Extended Family Study
by nVaVnVa
Summary: We've met Yelena's whole family but what about Valek's? We know his immediate family is dead but there has to be someone still alive, right? And what happens when it's time for Yelena to meet the family?
1. Chapter 1

**I'M EXCITED. I'VE BEEN THINKING OF THIS PLOT FOR A WHILE BUT I'VE FINALLY PUT IT ON PAPER. PLEASE TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Though I would like to have Valek, just saying. **

Valek swung off his horse and casually walked into the castle, glad to finally be home. The Commander had sent him to Ixia a month prior to spy on some of the master magicians and Valek hadn't found anything of interest, except, of course, Yelena. He spent two nights with Yelena on his way back but that wasn't nearly enough. Valek couldn't wait until Yelena came to Ixia for "negotiation" talks.

As Valek strode to his rooms, he sensed a shift in the air. Over time, he had developed a 6th sense that told him when certain things were off and right now, alarms were going off in his head. Valek thought about poking around but decided to go to his rooms first and see if there was any explanation left for him by Ari or Janco.

When Valek reached his door, he felt the strange tingling of magic pressing against his skin. A magician had been here recently. Valek inspected his locks, surprised to find them perfectly intact and working, when he turned around to survey his room, his breath caught in his throat. It was his worst nightmare come true.

The room had been cleaned thoroughly. All the books which had been previously scattered on the floor where now stacked into neat piles based on topic and then alphabetical order. The papers of his desk had been made into neat piles too. Valek had no doubt that the intruder had helped themselves to his stuff while he was gone. Filled with dread, Valek hurried to his personal room and stopped by all the other rooms in the process. Each and every one of them had been cleaned, with new sheets and the windows were open, allowing the stale air to go out. Even the room that Valek carved in was clean, not a speck of dust could be found. This definitely wasn't Marge's work.

The largest surprise, however, awaited Valek in his bedroom. The hallway was still covered in the fine powder Valek sprinkled to make sure he'd know if anyone had come in while he was gone. The powder seemed untouched but he knew that the intruder was very capable of covering up their tracks. When Valek finally opened the door and examined his room, his heart fell. The room was just as clean as the others and a single Forget-me-not was on his bedside table. Next to the flower was a card that said 'I've missed you'.

If Valek had any doubt who the intruder was, he knew for sure now. Of course it was her. It had been at least a decade since they had last seen one another; it was way past time for her to drop by. Valek hurried out of his room, he had to find her before she caused too much trouble.

Luckily for everyone, the first people Valek ran into were Ari and Janco. "Have you seen anyone new here?" He snapped, not even bothering to say hello.

"Well, it's nice to see you here, Valek. And no, Yelena hasn't dropped by yet. We thought she would be with you." Janco smirked infuriatingly.

Valek scowled. "Grow up and answer my question. Ari?" He turned sharply to the more serious second-in-command.

"I don't know, sir. What do you mean?" Ari asked, frowning.

Valek hissed. "Have you seen a woman who is about 3 inches shorter than me with long black hair and blue eyes? I've been told we look alike, facial features or something."

Janco's eyes widened. "Do you an illegitimate daughter who looks exactly like you? Oh, my poison, Valek! Does Yelena know?" He almost shouted.

Passing servants watched with curious but alarmed expressions. Valek glared at them as they scampered off. "You idiot." Valek grabbed Janco's shoulder roughly. "One, don't talk so loud. Two, if I had a bastard child, why would I ask you? Three, I _don't _have any illegitimate daughter. I was simply asking about a woman who looks a little like me. For all you know, she could be thirty years older than I am!"

"She wouldn't be a woman than, she would be a grandma." Janco replied, only a little shaken by Valek's anger.

Valek shot him a dirty look. "30 laps for you tomorrow. Have either of you seen a woman who matches my description?"

Janco blanched. "30 laps? If I answer your question, will you reduce the amount?"

Valek fixed his cold, blue eyes on Janco. "I'll think about it." He said with a small, evil smile.

Janco shrank back. "Can I have a guarantee?"

Valek shook his head. "How about this, if I like your answer, I'll let you go without laps. If I don't, 30 laps plus a night in the dungeon." He smirked.

"I don't like that. I think I'll have to pass this deal." Janco held his hands up in surrender.

Valek snorted. "Just answer the question."

Janco decided not to push his luck anymore. "Yeah. She was walking by and she smiles a lot. Kinda hot too, if you don't mind me saying."

Valek was tempted to knock Janco upside the head but decided against it. "Did you talk to you? Did you see where she was going?"

"Uh…she asked me where she could find the commander. She claimed to be an old friend of his…" Janco's voice trailed off as he saw Valek's expression.

Valek felt the blood drain from his face. "And what did you tell her?" He asked quietly.

"I told her where the Commander's room was." Janco whispered. He really had no idea what was going on, but from Valek's demeanor, it couldn't be good.

Valek swore viciously and took off. "If you see her, find me immediately." He called over his shoulder.

**WHAT DID YOU THINK? PLEASE LEAVE ME A REVIEW AND TELL ME IF YOU WANT MORE. I'M INTERESTED IN KNOWING WHO YOU THINK THIS INTRUDER IS : ) **

**Also, chapters will probably get longer over time. I like to start out small ;) **


	2. Chapter 2

**WHOO! THANK YOU FOR ALL THE PEOPLE WHO REVIEWED LAST CHAPTER. THIS IS FOR YOU! SOME OF THE DETAILS MIGHT SEEM OFF BECAUSE IT'S BEEN A WHILE SINCE I'VE READ THE BOOKS. SORRY!**

**ENJOY: **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything. **

Valek stopped outside the Commander's door. He could hear voices and one was distinctly _her's. _Valek took a deep breath and calmed himself. For some reason, being around her always made him nervous. Like he had something to prove, or something, which made no sense because Valek was totally content with himself whenever she wasn't around or after he got used to her being part of his life.

Deciding to get revenge on her for popping in so suddenly, and cleaning his room, Valek snuck in the Commander's chambers through one of the side back doors. He slid his knife out of his sleeve silently and crept forward towards the table where she and the Commander were sitting. Thankfully, it was the Commander who was facing the door and he kept his face smooth and emotionless when he saw Valek.

"-I don't see why you won't just change the curtains." She was saying. For some reason, _she _had something against their curtains. Every time she came to Ixia, she would attempt to convince the Commander that he needed more colorful ones.

"We've been through this. These curtains do their job perfectly and I'm not interested in opulent curtains." The Commander responded patiently. Valek knew that while the Commander would never admit it aloud, he secretly enjoyed arguing with her.

She sighed. "Fine. Don't get opulent ones; just get ones with more color. All this black makes me so depressed. It's like the walls are closing in on me." She threw her hands up in the air in defeat.

Valek stood right behind her chair now and placed one hand on her shoulder to steady her and slid the other hand (and knife) right beneath her chin. "Then leave." He said simply, smirking down at her.

She looked exactly the same. Her long, straight black hair was pulled up into a high pony and her icy blue eyes looked at Valek with a little surprise and deep humor. She had a sharp nose that gave her a contemptuous look that suited her personality perfectly and her lips were pulled up into a smirk that mirrored Valek's own.

"My dear cousin, why is it that we can never meet normally?" She asked calmly. Her voice was low but filled with power that pulsed around the room.

"Because, _Vivian, _you never tell me when you come. _And _you simply waltz around messing up everything everywhere you go." Valek removed his knife and stepped back to allow Vivian room to breath.

She rolled her eyes. "Look, I send you letters but you never respond, so don't try to blame our communication problem on me. Also, quit being so irritated about the fact that I cleaned you room. Anyone with a sane mind would be happy. Now it finally looks like a human lives there, not a pig."

Valek snorted. "I have a method to my madness, believe it or not. Now you screwed up everything and I have to rearrange it all." He glared at her.

Vivian narrowed her eyes. "Oh, don't you dare turn that room into a pigsty again, Valek! It took me a whole _day _to clean it!" She growled.

Valek grinned evilly. "Oh, yeah? Then prepare to be heart broken." Valek turned and took off towards the door, bent on destroying as much as he could.

Before he could reach it, Vivian tackled him. He was surprised at her agility, he would have thought that she would lose her skill over time but if anything, it seemed that Vivian had become more powerful. "I got you." She crowed, sitting on his back as he lay face down on the floor.

Valek stopped squirming for a moment and felt Vivian's legs tense. She knew he was going to do something. Valek suddenly flipped over and sat up. Vivian leapt up and back, trying to avoid his hands that reached out to grab her leg and pull her down. She started to move out of his range but Valek lounged forward and grabbed her ankle, sending her crashing to the floor.

Vivian twisted and kicked Valek's shoulder, causing him to let go of her leg. Maximizing on his distraction, Vivian aimed a punch at his head but Valek saw it in the corner of his eye and ducked down. Vivian jerked back, knowing that he would recover as soon as he sat back up. Valek had learned his lesson about her speed, however, and he grabbed her, flipping her over his shoulder even before he straightened.

Vivian gave a squeak in surprise and then burst out laughing. Valek grinned and put her down. "Not bad, old man." She grinned up and him. "I missed you." And then she flung her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly.

Valek returned the hug with equal vigor. He could never stay mad at Vivian, she was his only living family and she had a certain charm to her. Besides, she also made an awesome fighting opponent. "I didn't miss you at all." He grinned when she pulled away with a frown. "And I'm _not _old."

Vivian burst into laughter again. "In denial, Valek?" She teased. "I see grey hair."

Valek resisted the urge to look at his shoulder length hair; he knew she was pulling his leg. "Really now? Well, then, you better watch out because you're not much younger than me and girls look terrible with grey hair."

Vivian huffed. "Well, excuse me. I am 7 whole years younger than you. Besides, early greying is clearly part of your father's side of the family."

Valek laughed. "Right. So if there is any trait that you don't like, it becomes my father's? Nice try. I'm going to laugh when you start greying before you turn 40."

Vivian stuck her tongue out at him. "It's ok, because I can always look at you and be happy that you are more shriveled than I am. Besides, with any luck, I'll inherit _my_ father's traits. I swear that man doesn't age." She shook her head.

Valek opened his mouth to say something back but the Commander cut in. "How is your father? I've never met him…"

"Uh…" Vivian ran a hand through her hair. "Be glad you haven't met him. He's not someone you want to meet." She said wincing.

The Commander frowned. "You don't like him then?" He probed.

Vivian and Valek exchanged looks. "We don't see eye to eye on many things." Vivian answered vaguely.

"They hate each other." Valek clarified. Vivian shot him a look.

"I see." The Commander looked from Vivian to Valek, noticing their silent communication. "Well, you two catch up in Valek's room. I have work to do." He stood. "I'll see you two at dinner?" He raised an eyebrow.

Valek nodded and led Vivian to the door. "Think about curtains in the meanwhile!" Vivian called back as she walked away with Valek.

They walked in amicable silence until Janco sauntered up to them. "Valek! Aren't you going to introduce us?" He asked smugly, looking at Vivian.

"No." Valek answered bluntly and began to walk the other way. "30 laps." He called back.

Janco's face fell. He muttered a few choice words beneath his breath, causing Vivian to giggle.

"Wait, Valek." Vivian grabbed his arm and pulled him back. "Why is he running 30 laps?" She asked.

"Because you are nosey." Valek answered, annoyed. Seeing Vivian's look, he attempted to elaborate. "I'm not as fond of Janco as I am of Ari. Janco's mouth runs faster than his brain."

Vivian frowned at him. "What does that have to do with anything?" She asked. "And who is Ari?"

"Big, blond haired guy." Valek responded, bored. "Are we done here?" He asked, trying to turn away.

"No! You still haven't told me who she is yet!" Janco burst out before clasping his hands over his mouth.

Valek looked at him with one calmly raised eyebrow. "40 laps."

"What? No-" Janco started.

"Don't worry. Just run 30 laps. I'm Valek's girlfriend." Vivian smirked at Valek's horrified face.

"What? Does Yelena know about this? Valek, you-!" Janco burst out again.

Vivian's laughter cut him off. "I'm just kidding. I'm Vivian, his cousin." She held out her hand. "It's nice meeting you formally. You have very good direction skills." She smiled easily.

Janco breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought I was going to have to beat up Valek. It's nice meeting you too. How long will you be staying?" Something about his tone indicated that his question wasn't so innocent.

Vivian grinned and shrugged. "Not sure. I'll be here until my husband decides he's done hacking other people to pieces."

Janco's face froze. "You're married? And your husband chops up people randomly?"

Vivian laughed. "Yes, I'm married. And he doesn't randomly kill people, he's fighting in a war." She gave him an amused wink. "Let's go, Valek. I think Janco needs time to process what he just learned. His mouth doesn't seem to be working properly anymore."

Valek grinned and followed her. As soon everyone was out of hearing distance, Vivian looked at Valek through the corner of her eye. "Who is Yelena?" She asked abruptly.

Valek froze for a second before answering calmly. "She's my cat. She's very possessive." He looked at Vivian, his face perfectly serious.

Vivian narrowed her eyes and then decided to play along. "Really? Where is she? I didn't see her while cleaning your room…"

"Uh…yeah. I keep her in the dungeon because she has rabies." Valek answered quickly.

Vivian snickered. "Right. So…is she named after anyone?"

Valek frowned. "No…"

"So you came up with the name Yelena all on your own one day?" She raised an eyebrow. "How interesting, I didn't know you were into naming as well as sculpting. Do you name your statues too?"

Valek scowled as he opened the door of his room. "Shut up."

"Tell me. Who is Yelena really?" She asked, cornering Valek against the wall.

Valek thought quickly. "She's a killer." He responded. He hoped that Vivian would get off his back for a while but instead, her face lit up.

"A killer? Valek, she's like you! Are you two together? Oh, Valek, this is wonderful. An evil woman to love my evil cousin. I'm so happy for you. I'm sure you two make the most perfect pair." She threw her arms around Valek and kissed his cheek happily.

Valek stared at her like she'd grown a second head. "Right." He said slowly. He decided to let her jump to conclusions because explaining would be too hard and it would take too much time and energy.

Vivian clapped her hands excitedly. "When can I meet her?" She asked.

Valek stopped what he was doing and turned to her. "What?" He was horrified. Yelena plus Vivian would probably cause him to literally grey early.

"Valek…" Vivian gave him an expecting smile.

"Never. You'll never meet her." He responded seriously.

Vivian snorted. "Drama queen. Fine, I'll find her myself." She said, breezing past him into one of the empty rooms that she'd claimed as her own.

Valek grinned. "Good luck." He responded, confident that Vivian would give up before Yelena came to visit.

**YEAY! KNOW YOU FINALLY KNOW WHO **_**SHE **_**IS. SOME PEOPLE MIGHT HAVE ISSUES WITH VALEK CALLING YELENA A KILLER BUT KEEP IN MIND THAT HE'S JUST TRYING TO KEEP VIVIAN OFF HIS BACK AND KILLING IS KIND OF THE FORMOST THING ON HIS MIND SINCE HE'S AN ASSASSIN. **

**ALSO, I KNOW VALEK IS A LITTLE OOC BUT PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THIS IS HIS COUSIN. HE IS A LOT MORE AT HOME AROUND HER SINCE THEY'VE GROWN UP TOGETHER. YOU'LL GET MORE ON VALEK AND VIVIAN'S CHILDHOOD LATER ON AS WELL. **

**WHAT DO YOU THINK SO FAR? LEAVE ME REVIEWS PLEASE! YOU'LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT VIVIAN PAST LATER ON TOO. : ) **


	3. Chapter 3

**I'M SPOILING YOU ALL, I DON'T THINK I'VE EVER UPDATED THIS FAST IN MY LIFE. ENJOY: **

**Disclaimer: Why do I bother? I don't own anything**

Vivian trailed a very annoyed looking Valek to the Commander's rooms at dinner time. For the past hour, she had been trying to convince Valek to get an actual cat and name it Yelena. Valek always responded with the same blunt "I already have one."

"Do you think the Commander has changed his mind about curtains?" Vivian piped up as they neared the doors.

Valek internally sighed in relief. "I think you should definitely talk to him about it." He responded, and then added in his head _And get off my case. _

When Vivian finally saw the Commander, she waltzed away from Valek's side and gave him a hug. "Oh, I missed you _all _day. Valek is such a sourpuss. I mean, look at his face!" She waved her hand erratically at Valek's amused expression.

"Lovely." The Commander responded blandly and extracted himself from Vivian's arms.

Vivian had taken to adopting the whole of Ixia into her family the last time she had visited. Anyone who didn't have any relatives near them automatically inherited Vivian's attention. The Commander was no exception. "Ok, so, tell me, how was your day?" Vivian leaned forward and looked at the Commander expectantly.

"Good. Busy." The Commander responded as the new food taster walked in.

"Oh my poison!" Vivian exclaimed, shooting out of her chair. "What is wrong with your face?" In her defense, the new food taster had recently been poisoned by a potion that caused small blood vessels in the body to burst, making it look like he had been beaten up badly. The fact that his nose had been previously broken and never properly reset didn't help the image.

"Um…" The new food taster started awkwardly.

"Just do your job and get out." Valek instructed as Vivian shot him a look.

"So how do you choose food tasters?" She asked curiously.

"We use our brain." Valek answered bluntly, watching the food taster leave from the corner of his eye.

Vivian snorted. "Right. Ok, Ambrose…." She turned back to the Commander with a mischievous gleam in her eye. "Have I told you I like your name? It reminds me of dessert." She grinned and tucked into her food without checking for poisons.

"Is that a compliment?" The Commander asked, raising an eyebrow slightly.

Vivian nodded and swallowed before talking. "Of course. I'm trying to sweet talk you before getting to the real stuff, you know?" She grinned again.

The Commander sighed. "Does this have to do with curtains?"

"You thought about it like I asked you too!" Vivian exclaimed. "So what do you think?" She scooted her chair closer to him.

"No." Was all the Commander said before taking a bite of his food and chewing slowly.

"How anticlimactic." Vivian muttered beneath her breath and took out her anger on her piece of steak.

"Why don't you just admit defeat and leave our curtains alone?" Valek suggested, taking Vivian's steak before she butchered it too much.

"Because they are ugly and depressing, especially those in the main hall. Honestly, my vomit is more attractive." Vivian pushed her largely uneaten meal away.

"You must have amazing vomit then." The Commander said in deadpan.

"Ambrose, please?" Vivian asked quietly, touching the back of his hand. "Just give it color. Don't change; just put a streak of red or green or something. Something to make this place look alive. Is that seriously so irreconcilable with your thoughts on opulence?" She said reasonably.

The Commander stared at her for a minute, thinking. "I'll consider it. But don't hold your breath." He said finally.

"That's farther than you got last time." Valek smirked at Vivian, eating her food after finishing his own.

Vivian narrowed her eyes and drank all of Valek's water. "Thank you." She said sweetly.

The petty games between Valek and Vivian continued throughout dinner until the Commander kicked them out and told them to grow up before the generals meeting that would be taking place in the next week.

Valek plopped down behind his desk and began looking at reports as soon as he reached his rooms. "I'm going to steal one of your statues, ok?" Vivian asked, wandering down the hall.

Valek gave a noncommittal sound and ignored her. As he was looking through his reports, Valek found a letter from Yelena. His heart nearly stopped from anticipation. He looked around to make sure Vivian wasn't near and tore the letter open, reading and rereading before tossing the letter in the fire so Vivian wouldn't find out.

"Damn." He cursed quietly. Yelena had informed him that she was invited to come the following week to attend one of the generals meetings but was going to come early to meet Valek, Ari and Janco. She was supposed to arrive in about two days.

Valek paced around the room. On one hand, he was happy that Yelena was coming. On the other, he was terrified that it was too soon. Vivian was still bouncing around the castle in excitement. She would probably suffocate Yelena with her endless energy.

Just as he was about to come up with a list of excuses, the flames in his fireplace crackled and Valek watched in horror as a man emerged from the fire, clad in only chain mail. The man looked down at himself and cursed at the same time Valek dove to his couch and pulled a long sword out from underneath.

"Who are you?" Valek's stance was deadly and he held his sword in a loose, confident gripe that would scare any opponent.

The man held up his arms and stepped back a little. "Simply a guard, sir." He responded cautiously and looked around. "I was told that her Highness, Queen Vivian was here."

At that moment, Vivian decided to appear, examining a statue of a hummingbird. It slipped from her hand and dropped to the floor with a dull thud. "Allen, what are you doing here?" Her stance had gone from casual to formal. She stood taller and her voice pulsed with magic.

"My lady." He bowed low. "We haven't been able to find you and you know we must stay with you always as your guards. I apologize for the inconvenience but I request that you help us come to you. We seem to be a little…lost." He looked chagrined.

Vivian's face hardened. "And who told you to use fire transport to find me?"

"The king, my lady." Allen dropped his eyes to the floor nervously but otherwise held still.

Vivian's face lost some ire. "Fine. I'll find you. Stay where you are. Expect me in two days. You are dismissed." She ordered.

Allen nodded and bowed again. "Thank you, my lady." Then he stepped back into the fire and disappeared.

Before Valek could grill Vivian out, she began cursing worse than a sailor. "Stupid Cai for overreacting." She kicked the couch and then hissed in pain.

Valek couldn't hold back a snicker. "That's what you get for marrying a prince. Speaking of which, isn't he supposed to be a king now, or something?"

Vivian paused her cursing for answer Valek's question. "Yes, he was crowned king 5 years ago, which you would know _if you read the letters I sent you!" _She gave him a pointed glare.

Valek knew not to push her farther but he couldn't help defend himself. "I didn't _receive _most of the letters, how could I read them?"

Vivian gave him a dark look and began pacing. "Should I leave now or tomorrow morning? Do you think the Commander will let me keep those two buffoons in the castle?"

Valek thought for a minute. "You should leave tomorrow morning. They've been without you for at least a week; they can stand a night more." He didn't want Vivian returning before Yelena got to Ixia. "As for housing the buffoons, who I assume are your guards, the Commander will be fine as long as they stay in line. What will they do here?" He bent down and weighed the dropped statue in his hand.

"I don't know. What do guards usually do? There is no need to protect me here, so, eat, sleep, and fornicate probably." Vivian growled, hating the idea of having guards trail her around.

"Get them to stop fornicating and I'm sure we'll have no problems. There are plenty of extra rooms in the castle." Valek replied calmly.

Vivian nodded and sighed, calming herself. "Thanks."

Vivian left the room to pack lightly and Valek settled back down in his chair when a thought suddenly wormed its way into his head. He cast a doubtful look towards his fireplace and then strolled to Vivian's room.

He stood in the doorway and waited until she was done shoving light dresses and bags of medicines in her pack to begin speaking. "You're going to wear a while riding around and finding your guards?" He raised an amused eyebrow.

"I have to. Stupid Queenly protocol." She gave the room a once over to make sure she wasn't missing anything.

Valek smirked. "Nice. Ok, I just wanted to make sure before you go that no one else will be stepping out of my fireplace." He frowned.

"Oh, yeah, they won't. Of course, you can chop up anyone else who tries to, but I don't think anyone will. I mean, the only way Allen knew which fire to pop out of was because Cai told him."

"How does Cai know?" Valek narrowed his eyes.

"Magic, my dear. We've all got magic, remember?" She waved her fingers at him playfully and smiled. "But seriously, we do have a magical connection. Cai always knows where I am and vice versa, and we both know where our babies are." She smiled fondly at the thought of them.

Valek choked. "Babies? You have kids?" He asked, terrified.

"Yes, Valek. You think Cai would let me prance around the world if he didn't already have an heir?" It was her turn to raise eyebrows.

"You've always been prancing around the world and I'd be surprised if he stopped you from anything. How many…kids do you have? How old are they? Ugh! Why didn't you tell me I'm an uncle?" Valek ran a hand roughly through his hair and started pacing.

Vivian looked at him and laughed. "What are you so worried about? You're only going to have to see them for like two weeks maximum."

Valek glared at her. "I'm an _uncle. _Do you know what that means? I have to be nice and spoil them or something." He said as though being nice was the world's hardest task.

Vivian stared at him and laughed so hard she cried. "You'll get over it, I'm sure." She wiped her eyes and patted Valek's arm. "You can figure out how to be an uncle while I'm gone. If you're still having trouble by the time I come back, I'll help you out." She winked and kicked Valek out of the room, claiming that she needed rest for the ride the next day.

Vivian was gone by the time Valek woke up the next morning but he had a nice, long letter written just for him by Vivian. He contemplated burning it in spite but realized Vivian might have something important to say. He hastily skimmed the letter and then burned it because his first impulse was correct: Vivian_ didn't_ have anything important to say.

The rest of the day passed in a blur as Valek pushed all thoughts of being an uncle out of his head and focused on being the master assassin. Before he knew it, he was standing outside the castle, waiting for Yelena to arrive.

Yelena came galloping in and slid of her horse and right into Valek's arms. "I missed you." She murmured against his chest, hugging him tightly.

"Me too." Valek smiled. And then as he heard Ari and Janco's shouts, he remembered Vivian. "Love? Let's go to my room before the Power Twins get here, I have something urgent to tell you."

**I HOPE YOU DON'T MIND THE CHARACTERS BEING A LITTLE OOC, I'M TRYING. NEXT CHAPTER SHOULD BE YELENA AND VIVIAN. THE BABIES AND CAI WILL JOIN THE PARTY LATER. **

**THANK YOU, DEAR REVIEWERS. PLEASE KEEP IT UP AND TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT, WHAT YOU THINK, AND HOW I CAN IMPROVE. **


	4. Chapter 4

**I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH. ENJOY: **

**Disclaimer: Vivian's mine, the rest is Snyder's**

_**Hey guys, I revamped the meeting part a bit. I'd taken the coward's way out before and didn't like it anymore so I made it a little more interesting. It's just a few paragraphs if you want to read over it again.**_

Valek paced around his room while Yelena perched on the couch, watching him amusedly. "Why don't you sit down and I'll help you relieve some tension?" Yelena suggested with a wicked grin.

Valek grinned back but shook his head. "No. What is taking her so long? She was supposed to be here _two days _ago!"

Yelena raised an eyebrow. "Are you worried about her? That's so sweet." She smirked.

Valek glared. "No, I simply don't want to start something I can't finish. I'm afraid the moment I start with you, she'll pop out of nowhere and interrupt."

Yelena rolled her eyes. "She can't be _that _bad."

Valek snorted. "You have no idea."

Yelena finally took matters into her own hands after another hour of Valek pacing. Once Valek was sufficiently relaxed, Yelena kissed his cheek and sauntered out of the room, claiming she had a training session with Janco. Valek sighed and finally forced himself to focus until the hours flew by and the stack of papers on his desk visibly lessened.

He was in the middle of reading one of his reports when he suddenly felt a pair of hands on his shoulders and Yelena's breath on the cheek. "Coming to dinner?" She asked in a teasing tone.

Valek grinned and turned around, capturing Yelena's lips in a searing kiss. "Why would I go? My dinner is right here." He pulled her into his arms and proceeded to devour her mouth.

Yelena pulled back first, her breathing heavy and her eyes sparkling. "I'd love to do this, darling. But the Commander really wants to see you." She gave him a smirk and slipped out of his arms.

Valek narrowed his eyes but followed her to the Commander's rooms for dinner anyway.

"You wanted me?" Valek asked in a bored tone and sat in the chair next to the Commander; Yelena sat on Valek's left side.

"Yes. Where is Vivian?" The Commander asked, taking a bite of his chicken and chewing slowly.

Valek shrugged casually. "I wish I knew. She probably decided to give her guards a hard time and take a detour back here. She should be back soon. Why?" He raised an eyebrow at the Commander. "Did you finally change your mind about the curtains?" He smirked.

The Commander gave him an insufferable look. "Don't fool yourself or Vivian."

"Curtains?" Yelena asked in confusion.

"Vivian has a thing against our curtains. She finds them to be too depressing and ugly." Valek explained, grinning.

Yelena laughed. "And she's trying to convince the Commander to change them?" She guessed the rest.

The Commander nodded. "Unfortunately."

Just then, a loud thump came from the hall way, followed by a feminine hiss. Valek made a move to get up but once he heard the voice, he sat back down. "Speak of the poison…" He said, listening to the angry murmurs outside. "Vivian's back." He announced just as the door opened.

Yelena curiously leaned forward in her chair to look outside but no one came in the room. "Where is she?" Yelena asked, beginning to get up.

Valek caught her wrist and pulled her back down. "She'll be back. And then we'll know where she went."

Just as the words left his mouth, Vivian came striding in the door. Her hair was windblown and tangled but somehow it didn't make her seem any less queenly. "Hello, everyone. Valek, I do hope you had someone make a room for my guards, or there will be more trouble than I'm ready to handle." She said exasperatedly.

"I did." Valek reassured her and began to introduce her to Yelena when Vivian cut him off.

"You are Valek's soul mate?" She asked, her mouth slowly curling into a smile.

Yelena smiled back at her cautiously. "Yes, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Vivian took the chair next to the Commander and motioned for Yelena to sit as well. "So…" She started, glancing at Valek, her eyes twinkling with mischief. "What are your hobbies, Yelena?"

Yelena frowned for a minute, clearly not expecting the present question. "Well, I'm a soul finder so I try to help people and I'm also the Sitian-Ixian liaison. That doesn't leave much room for hobbies, I'm afraid."

Vivian hummed in reply before asking another question. "Okay, do you do any sports? Any particular physical exercise that interests you?"

Before Yelena could open her mouth, Valek cut in. "Where are you going with this line of questioning, Vivian?" He asked sharply.

"Nowhere." Vivian said innocently. "I just want to know more about the wonderful woman who has melted your cold, disgusting heart." She batted her eyelashes at Valek.

Yelena could now see why Valek worried about Vivian's presence. "I used to be an acrobat." Yelena offered before Valek could insult Vivian back.

Vivian's eyes lit up. "Really?" She asked gleefully. "My dear, you are perfect. Valek, I approve." She snickered.

Valek snorted. "As if I need your opinion."

Vivian rolled her eyes but her grin didn't diminish. "You know, Yelena," She started conversationally, "All of Valek's previous girlfriends were acrobats or gymnasts of some sort."

Valek, who had previously been drinking water, nearly choked. "Vivian." He growled.

"Honestly, you have no idea what weird shapes they could contort themselves into. He had this one psychopath girlfriend who could curl her body into a ball backwards so she could look up at you from between her ankles and she was so creepy. Seriously, she looked like a serpent. I'm pretty sure she had some type of curious disease as well. So, just beware the next time you and Valek decide to get together, you're going to want to make sure everything looks normal, okay?" Vivian ended, her face turned into a mask of sincerity as she patted Yelena's hand solemnly.

Yelena gaped at Vivian. "Excuse me?"

"Shut up, Vivian. Quit lying. Yelena, love, please don't listen to her. Vivian was hit over the head one too many times as a child." Valek hastily explained.

Vivian burst out laughing. "Oh, dear, you should see your faces. This is priceless!" She clapped her hands and grinned widely. "Don't worry, Yelena. Valek doesn't have any exotic diseases, but the part with his flexible girlfriends is completely true. But don't worry, you fit his criteria wonderfully, I predict a long and happy relationship ahead."

"I'm glad." Valek said with a glower. "I predict the end of my sword against your throat if you continue to make up stories."

Vivian snorted and rolled her eyes. "You'd be lying in a puddle of your own blood before you could even draw your sword, old man." She snapped back before turning to the Commander and discussing curtains.

"I see what you mean now." Yelena murmured to Valek. Valek nodded somberly before Yelena continued. "But you know, she is kind of funny." Yelena winked as Valek groaned.

"So, Yelena, did you know Valek has a cat named after you?" Vivian turned back to Valek and Yelena, a wicked grin on her face.

Valek choked on his chicken. "What?" He, Yelena, and Ambrose said all at once.

"Yeah." Vivian continued, smiling maliciously. "It lives in the dungeon and has rabies. Poor thing."

"I've never heard of this cat before." The Commander peered at Valek curiously.

"Aw, I want to see it! What does it look like, Valek?" Yelena asked, a teasing smile on her face.

"Dead." Valek said, glaring at Vivian. And then an idea popped in his head. "You know, I went to go check on the cat a few days ago, right after you left, Vivian; and before I knew it was dead, obviously." Valek warmed to his story. "And I saw it just lying on the ground, twitching. When I examined it closer, it looked poisoned, like someone had given it rat liver poison. Naturally, I tried to find the source but I couldn't. So, eventually, I gave up and went back to my office. That night, I was going to bed when I saw one of my statues in your room. I wasn't going to let you steal my stuff that easily so I took it back and when I was leaving, I saw a small bottle of rat liver poison next to your bags. What was it doing there, I wonder?" A slow grin curled on Valek's face.

Vivian made a mock offended face. "Are you accusing me of killing your cat?" She demanded.

"Well, if the shoe fits…" Valek trailed off.

"If the shoe fits, I'll beat you with it." Vivian shot back. "I'm innocent. Fully and completely."

The Commander looked back and forth between Valek and Vivian. "Which one of them is lying?" He asked Yelena with a slightly amused expression.

"Vivian for sure. But I have a strong feeling Valek is lying too. Somehow, I just don't think Valek had a cat in the first place." Yelena said with a laugh.

"Aw...I was having so much fun arguing with Valek. Why did you have to let the cat out of the bag, Yelena?" Vivian asked with a grin.

"You're so lame. Grow up, Vivian." Valek sneered.

"I will when you will, old man."

"I'd have to be grown up already if I was an old man." Valek grinned, knowing he'd won that round.

"I hate you." Vivian informed him.

"The feeling is mutual." Valek replied.

"You two are worse than me and Leif!" Yelena exclaimed, watching their banter.

"Not possible." Valek grinned.

"I'd love to take the other side and argue more but my guards are moaning and groaning in their room right now. I'm going to go set them straight." Vivian smiled and stood. "Good night, everyone. I'll see you tomorrow morning, Yelena!"

"Okay." Yelena said happily and Valek wondered what kind of torture Vivian would have lined up for him the next day.

Valek woke up the next morning before dawn to do his daily training routine. As he was doing laps around the castle, he saw a lone figure run up to him. It was Vivian.

"Leave me alone. It's too early in the morning for you." Valek growled, skipping the greetings.

"Good morning to you too, sunshine." Vivian smiled, in an insanely good mood for 4 in the morning.

"What do you want?" Valek asked, pushing his legs harder in a mild attempt to run away from her.

Vivian kicked up the speed as well, looking totally comfortable. "I want to fight you! We haven't done that in so long." She smiled.

"You're a beast." Valek informed her.

Vivian laughed. "I love you too. So, what do you say?"

"Fine." Valek huffed. "But you have to shut up for the rest of our run."

Vivian grinned but stayed so silent Valek almost forgot she was running right next to him. "Ok, did you bring weapons?" Valek asked as they stopped running.

Vivian nodded and paused a moment to catch her breath. "On the bench." She pointed to an array of swords, spears, knives and bows.

"Where did you get all these?" Valek asked, running his hands over a few impressive swords.

"Cai, my guards, your soldiers…" She shrugged casually.

Valek snorted in amusement. "Yeah, just give my soldiers heart attacks when they find out their weapons are missing."

"I'll put them back." Vivian protested.

"Right." Valek said in a tone that clearly conveyed his lack of confidence in her. "I'm keeping this one." He announced, picking up an impressive broadsword and swinging it experimentally.

Vivian shrugged. "Ok, it was Cai's anyway." She picked up another, smaller sword from the pile.

"Will he want it back?" Valek asked, pointing the sword at Vivian.

"No, he doesn't care. He's got so many other ones." Vivan said, casually pushing his sword away with her own.

"Good, because I never intended to give it back." Valek grinned and lunged suddenly.

Vivian jumped back and parried, pushing hard against his sword. As Valek started to move back, Vivian slid her sword lower, nearly cutting his outer thigh. Valek danced to the side, dodging her downward blow and swinging his sword to her uncovered right side. Vivian spun and smashed her sword against his, dangerously close to the hilt. Valek pulled back, trying to get out of Vivian's range but he was too late. Vivian quickly disengaged their swords and pressed the flat of her sword against Valek's neck. "Dead", she announced.

"That was a warm up, again." Valek demanded.

Vivian and Valek had rematch after rematch, winning and losing alternatively. They were so caught up in their own fight that they didn't notice the crowd gathered around them until Janco blurted out, "losing your touch, Valek?"

Both Valek and Vivian stopped and faced him. "How did those laps go, Janco?" Vivian asked sweetly.

"Fine." Janco said nervously, glancing at Valek's face.

"Good, because you just earned yourself 15 more." Valek gave him a cold smile.

Janco turned pale. "15?"

"That's not very nice." Yelena said disapprovingly from next to him. She'd been watching Valek and Vivian too.

"Don't mess with the Master Assassin." Vivian winked. "I'll see you after breakfast, Yelena. And if we have time, I'll teach you how to beat your boyfriend."

"Good luck with that." Valek said smugly. "Rematch tomorrow morning, I'll win _every single one._" He informed Vivian.

Vivian scoffed. "We'll see about that."

**THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS. AS ALWAYS, TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK. **

_**If you reread the meeting part, how did it go? Sorry for the late updates, I'm working on the next chapter!**_


	5. Chapter 5

**THANK YOU FOR YOUR PATIENCE AND REVIEWS! SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG, BETWEEN SCHOOL AND VACATIONS ALL THE TIME GETS SUCKED OUT OF LIFE. ENJOY: **

**Disclaimer: don't own anything but Vivian's revenge ;)**

VPOV

Valek walked back to his room after joining the Commander for breakfast. When he reached his door, he saw Vivian's guards sitting outside, playing cards. "What are you doing here?" Valek asked, annoyed, they were blocking his path.

The pair looked up and scooted to the side, holding their cards close to their chest. "Her highness wouldn't let us in the room and we have been ordered to stay as near her as possible." One of the guards explained.

Valek pitied them. Trying to protect Vivian was more of a punishment than an honor. "What are they doing in there?" Valek asked, opening the locks.

The guards shrugged. "Her highness has mind blocked us." The other guard said.

Valek suppressed a smirk. So Vivian. He entered his room and was surprised to see it unoccupied. Slowly walking through his suite, Valek made sure everything was in its proper place. Vivian had a way of stealing things she liked. He stopped by his carving room before proceeding to check the rest of the rooms. As he was taking inventory of his statues, he heard voices in the room across from him.

"This is such a nice color, it _really _compliments your skin." That was Vivian, for sure.

"But it's so…bold. It's like shouting for people to pay attention to me." Yelena protested. "I've already got enough attention."

"I'd say." Vivian muttered, clearly continuing her torture. "Sweetheart, if you didn't want attention, you shouldn't have decided to take the master assassin as your heartmate."

Valek had to admit, she did have a point. But deciding that eavesdropping on their conversation was juvenile, he decided to carve a statue for Vivian, or her children, whom he still needed to ask about.

Valek took a lump of rock and carefully started carving it. It was a painstakingly long process and when Valek had carved the statue into the outline of an animal, he decided to take a break. His hands were sore from all the holding and carving.

"-he has such great biceps, Yelena. I can't even _begin_ to tell you how amazing they are." Valek heard Vivian speak excitedly. He wanted to vomit. Which cousin wants to hear about their cousin's love life? He really hoped Yelena wouldn't get pulled into this conversation.

"Really? I just can't decide what I like about Valek the most. It's _everything._" Yelena responded. Valek couldn't believe what he heard. Half of him was smug that Yelena thought he was amazing in every way, but the other half of him was horrified that she was sharing this information with _Vivian_.

"Oh, come on. There has to be _something _that's better than everything else." Vivian pressed. Valek inched closer to the door, his curiosity getting the best of him.

Yelena sighed. "Vivian. I'm telling you. It's everything. Valek in his sneak suit…I can't even _begin _to explain."

Vivian squealed. Literally. "Seriously? You've seen him in that thing? I thought it was supposed to be super-secret or something." She giggled.

Yelena laughed too. "Well, obviously. But I'm his _heartmate._ I get to see everything."

Valek nearly gagged. He loved Yelena but this conversation was getting out of hand quickly. He was trying to find a way to lead them off topic when Vivian suddenly asked, "Hey, where's Valek? Does it usually take him this long to have breakfast?" Valek was relieved that they had stopped talking about him but he quickly and silently moved away from the room so they wouldn't know he was eavesdropping.

The rest of the day flew by in a blur as Vivian gave Yelena a makeover, by the time she was done, Yelena was almost unrecognizable. "What do you think?" Vivian asked, drawing Valek out of his work.

Valek briefly looked up to see Yelena standing in front of him in a long deep green dress. Her long curly hair had been neatly piled on her head and Yelena's neck and wrists were covered in delicate gold chains. Her skin glowed and her hair shone. While Valek thought Yelena was beautiful no matter what, she looked exceptional this time.

Valek wanted to tell Yelena how amazing she looked but one glance at Vivian's smug face stopped him. "Very nice." He said simply, giving Yelena a small smile and turning back to is papers.

Vivian stomped over to him and glowered. "Very nice? I spent the whole day preening and primping your heartmate and all you say is 'very nice'? Valek, you better come up with a proper compliment or you're going to regret ever meeting me." Vivian threatened.

Valek felt a brief wave of anxiety at Vivain's threat but he clamped it down. "One, I already regret meeting you, and two, Yelena was already beautiful before you did anything to her, so there is no need for me to compliment the obvious." He said smugly.

Vivian's eyes blazed. "Oh, Valek Ixia. You push me too far." She turned marched out of the room. Moments later, Valek felt a small hum of magic permeate the room around him.

"What is she doing?" Valek asked Yelena.

"Cleaning up, most likely. I should go help her. She seemed very upset." Yelena replied, looking a little distracted. Valek wondered if Vivian was mind speaking with Yelena.

Valek sighed. "You look stunning, by the way." He told her as she started to walk to the other room.

Yelena smiled at Valek and the whole room seemed to brighten. "Thank you." She said sweetly and continued on her way to Vivian.

That night, after Valek crawled into bed with Yelena and showed her just how much he liked her dress, he felt a like tint of magic in the air around him. Valek moved slowly so he didn't wake up Yelena and performed a perfunctory sweep of his rooms. There was no one there except Yelena and himself. A quick look into the Commander's room told him there was no magic there either. Valek frowned but headed back to bed, wondering if he was feeling remnants from Vivian's magic.

Valek had been sleeping for only a short time when he felt magic brush against his skin again. His body was instantly alert and he stilled next to Yelena.

"What's wrong, Valek?" Yelena asked sleepily, turning over so she could nuzzle his chest.

Valek relaxed slightly. "Nothing, love. Sleep."

Yelena yawned and nodded before slipping her hands around his neck and stretching out to kiss his lips. Valek let his mouth mold to hers and just as he was about to lose himself in her lips, he felt a light prick on the back of his neck and blackness overtook him.

YPOV

"Good job!" A quiet voice whispered next to the bed.

Yelena jumped and felt under her pillow for her switch knife.

"Relax. It's just me." Vivian grinned, her white teeth flashing in the night. "Wonderful job. Perfect." She rubbed her hands together gleefully.

Yelena relaxed and laid her head on Valek's chest. "Take it easy, please." She murmured tiredly. "I don't want him to be too mad when he wakes up."

"Sure sure." Vivian said, kneeling down to pick up something. "How fond are you of Valek's hair?"

"No!" Yelena hissed, shooting back up into a sitting position. "Don't touch his hair."

"Shh!" Vivian looked at Valek in alarm as his finger twitched. She hurriedly pricked him again with a sleeping dart. "Don't wake him up. His body already has an extremely high tolerance for poisons. We don't have enough time for this."

"Don't touch his hair." Yelena growled.

Vivian sighed and muttered something about Yelena ruining her fun. "Fine, I won't cut it, but can I dye it temporarily?" She asked, holding up three bottles.

"Define temporary." Yelena crossed her arms.

Vivian rolled her eyes in the dark. "It'll come off when he washes his hair tomorrow morning."

"How many washes will it take?" Yelena asked suspiciously. Valek had warned her that Vivian had a way of twisting words.

"Just one. Don't worry. This isn't the real revenge. This is like the side dish." She smiled and proceeded to uncap her bottles. "Hold Valek up into a sitting position." She ordered.

Yelena tried to prop him up. "He's so heavy." She growled, pressing her back against his in an attempt to support him.

Vivian glanced up briefly and smiled. "You got it." She told Yelena soothingly. She pulled out two more darts and poked Valek's neck.

"How many times are you pricking him? He's not going to be able to work tomorrow." Yelena hissed.

"Relax." Vivian murmured as she carefully died Valek's hair. "This is just a precaution. He'll wake up tomorrow morning, just fine. I promise."

Yelena grumbled. "Hurry, my back hurts. And if he's incapacitated tomorrow, I'm turning you in."

"Got it." Vivian worked for a second longer, making sure Valek's newly dyed hair was dry. "Lower him down."

Yelena gently rested Valek back on the bed. She took one glance at his hair and pressed her hands to her mouth to keep from gasping. She was half amused and half horrified. "This will come off right?" She asked. Valek's previously shiny black hair was now dyed pink with red streaks. On either side of his face, there was one thin strip of blue. "He's going to kill us."

Vivian grinned. "Don't worry, he'll kill me, not you. He won't even know you were involved." She said calmingly and then explained to Yelena how she should act when he first work up.

"What are you doing now?" Yelena asked, peering at Vivian.

"Inking Valek's bicep." Vivian laughed evilly. "This will kill him."

"Oh my poison! Vivian, don't do anything permanent!" Yelena reached out to grab Vivian's arm.

Vivian jerked out of the way. "Stop worrying." She growled and leaned back over Valek's arm. "This will fade away by itself in about a week."

"Will washing help?"

Vivian shook her head and smirked. "Nope. You just have to wait until the ink seeps into your skin and disappears. Don't worry though, it's perfectly save. I've done it on my hands millions of times." She reassured Yelena.

Yelena reluctantly nodded, wondering what she'd gotten herself into.

"Sleep." Vivian said. "I'm almost done. Don't worry, I won't do anything else." She smiled.

Yelena eventually fell asleep and was woken up in the morning when she heard Valek roar. "VIVIAN! YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS!"

**DID YOU LIKE IT? PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK, WANT, FEEL. I'LL SEE YOU SOON…I HOPE. I STILL NEED TO THINK UP VALEK'S REVENGE. HEHE. **

**OH, BY THE WAY, THE 'INK' VIVIAN WAS USING WAS HENNA. WE'RE GOING TO ASSUME THAT VIVIAN HAD ACCESS TO THAT. LOL. **


	6. Chapter 6

**WARNING! VULGAR LANGUAGE IN THE BEGINNING. I TRY NOT TO CUSS BUT THIS SITUATION CALLED FOR IT, VALEK WAS JUST SO UPSET. LOL.**

**NEW CHAPTER, ENJOY!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own nada. **

VPOV

Valek stared at himself in the mirror. His hair had been dyed hideous colors in the morning and when he tried to wash it off, his hair had been bleached of all its color. He now stood in front of the mirror with white, blond hair that really did not fit his assassin persona. On his right arm, from mid-bicep to wrist, Vivian had written in deep brown: YELENA'S BITCH.

Valek growled as he checked the rest of his body to make sure Vivian hadn't done anything else to him. As he turned his neck, he felt soreness and knew that she'd probably poisoned him into a deep sleep. There was no other way she would have done this. He took one last glance in the mirror and roared. "Vivian! You will pay for this!" And he meant every word he said.

A few moments later, as Valek was trying to figure out how to get revenge, Yelena walked in the room. "Oh my poison!" She cried, clasping her hands over her mouth. "This was not supposed to happen." She whispered and darted from the room, no doubt to interrogate Vivian.

Valek shot up after her. He couldn't _believe _Yelena would betray him for Vivian. He was her _heartmate!_ Didn't that stand for something? "Oh, no you don't." Valek growled in Yelena's ear when he caught up to her. "What did _you _have to do with this?" Valek had been trying to figure out how Vivian had slipped him the sleeping potion but now it all made sense. Yelena had done that part for her.

"Nothing, I swear." Yelena held her palms up in surrender. "Vivian told me this wouldn't happen and everything would come off when you took a shower. I had no idea!" Her face looked alarmed and she had every right to be, Valek was practically breathing fire down her face.

"Why did you help her in the first place? I _told _you she couldn't be trusted. What would _possess _you to go behind my back with _her _of all people?" He snarled.

"I didn't want to!" Yelena hissed back. "How could you think so little of me? You think I _wanted _her to mess with you? You ass!"

"Then why did you do it?" Valek demanded.

"Because she blackmailed me!" Yelena admitted heatedly. "She told me I had to help her or she was going to go all out on you. I figured that she was right, if I helped her I could monitor what she was doing and she couldn't do anything too bad."

"This isn't too bad?" Valek gestured to himself, barely restraining himself. "How am I supposed to walk around bearing _this_?" He stabbed the tattoo on his arm.

"I didn't know she was writing that. When I looked, she was just doing something small and she told me to go to sleep because she was almost done. I figured she wouldn't lie to be because she's already taken half her anger out on your hair." Yelena shrank back.

Valek glared. "Fine. So it was ok what she did to my hair?" He asked, his voice dripping in venom.

"No! I told her not to do anything drastic with your hair and she said the color would come off after you washed your hair this morning." Yelena defended herself.

Valek's jaw clenched and he spoke tightly. "Yes, she was right. It _did _come off. _All _the color came off, even my natural hair color." He turned and left the room, no doubt to take his anger out on something else.

After smashing a couple of half formed statues and ripping apart pillows, Valek finally had himself under decent control and he made a plan. "Yelena." He called and gave her an evil smile when she found him. "I'll forgive you for helping her, if you help me get her back." He held up five sleeping darts.

Yelena groaned and covered her face. "What did I get myself into?" She muttered.

Valek looked at her unsympathetically. "You have only yourself to blame. I warned you." He pushed the darts into her hand and went to find other supplies.

Valek told Yelena what do to and then followed her to Vivian's room 15 minutes later. Then he reached the door, he found Vivian's guards blocking his path. "Move." He ordered.

The guards shook their head sadly. "We apologize but that isn't possible. Our duty it to protect the Queen and we have reason to believe you may harm her." One guard explained.

Valek raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I do have a reason to harm her. So move, or I'll harm you too."

The guards sighed and moved closer together, bending their knees slightly in case Valek intended to actually fight them. "Again, sorry. But our Lord had instructed us to keep the Queen safe. And we would much rather be decapitated by you than face his wrath."

Valek rolled his eyes. He couldn't see Cai hurting a fly. That man was way more bark than bite from what Valek had seen. He knew Cai had the potential to be extremely dangerous but with an attitude like his, that potential rarely owned up to much. "Fine, I won't bodily harm her. Now move." Valek needed to get started quickly or else the sleeping poison might wear off. Vivian had just as much resistance as Valek.

"We need to check your bag and we will be watching while you perform your revenge." The other guard answered unhappily.

Valek rolled his eyes again and held the bag out to inspection. "Will you get out of my way now?" He asked challengingly.

The guards nodded and followed Valek into Vivian's room. Valek smiled at the sight before him. Vivian was on the ground, unconscious, and Yelena hovered over her body nervously, still holding three darts. "I was beginning to think you'd never come." Yelena muttered before handing Valek the darts and moving back. The guards leaned against the wall, watching Valek closely.

Valek got to work quickly, determined to return Vivian's favor exactly. He found her dyes and applied them. He gave her bright red hair with blue streaks and poured a generous amount of pink dye into the roots of her hair, ensure that the color wouldn't come off easily.

Next, he found her tube of body ink and carefully drew on her hand, writing: CAI'S WHORE in big bold letters on the outside of her hand. He smirked at his handy work and then pricked Vivian with the last three darts. "That should suffice for now." He grabbed Yelena's hand and walked out of the room, unable to wait until Vivian woke up.

Surprisingly, Vivian didn't run to Valek's room and try to murder him right when she achieved consciousness. Instead, Valek had to wait until the Generals' dinner that night to see her again. Valek both dreaded and anticipated the dinner. He wanted to see how Vivian would cover up her hands but he knew that acting mature around her would be near impossible. Before leaving, Valek found some dark dye and washed his hair with it. The color caught on but not as well as Valek would have liked. Oh, well, he'd live.

When Valek arrived at the dinner table with Yelena, he saw Vivian sitting in the seat between the Commander and himself. She wore a fancy dress and long gloves, hiding the vulgar words on her hands. That was fine with Valek, he was hiding his tattoo as well and as long as his sleeve didn't go up, he wouldn't have to worry. The only thing that surprised Valek was that Vivian's hair was now a shimmering golden color. It looked odd against her skin, not bad, but not as good as the black had.

"I like your hair. Very unique." Valek complimented smoothly as he slid into his chair.

"Your's too. Looks like someone forgot how to apply hair color." She responded coolly.

Valek smirked. "Looks like someone ran out of the _right _hair color."

Vivian glared up at him and Valek smiled smugly. The Commander shot them a look that clearly said: behave.

The dinner was insufferable, to say the least. Vivian took every opportunity she could to elbow, kick, and stab Valek with her fork when no one was looking. Valek wished he could have acted like the bigger man and ignored her but that would be a lie. He ended up tearing the hem of her dress with his shoe when she 'accidently' made the edge of his sleeve slide up to mid-forearm.

Valek saw some of the Generals glancing at the 'tch' curiously as he shoved the sleeve back down. He purposely ignored them even when they sent him prying glances.

"Don't start a war you can't win." Valek murmured out of the corner of his mouth and he casually sipped some water.

"Who said I can't win?" Vivian shot back, popping a slice of potato in her mouth.

"You know I'll beat you every time you try something." Valek responded cockily.

Vivian snorted quietly. "You keep telling yourself that, old man."

Valek slept calmly that night, knowing it was too early in the game for Vivian to make a counterattack. And sure enough, he woke up the next morning with nothing out of the ordinary. Until he joined the Commander at breakfast, that is.

Generally, breakfast consisted of Valek, Ambrose, and the food taster until the later left. But this time, Vivian was in the room and she and the Commander were talking quietly, heads close together. Valek rolled his eyes and flaunted into the room and took his chair. "Care to enlighten me?" He asked, once the Commander and Vivian pulled away.

The Commander sent Vivian and looked and began to eat.

"I talked to Cai last night. The war is over; he's on his way here." Vivian said, toying with her the spoon in front of her.

Valek could never understand his cousin. "Isn't that a good thing?" He asked, frowning.

"Yeah." Vivian sighed. "Only then I have to act and dress like a Queen because he's going to bring his entourage."

"Will he bring your children?" Valek asked hesitantly, he still didn't know about them.

Vivian's face lit up. "Yup." She grinned. "I can't wait to see them." She was so excited she hugged herself. Valek raised an eyebrow. Vivian stuck her tongue at him. "You wouldn't know. You don't have kids."

"Thank fate." Valek mumbled under his breath. "Tell me about your…kids. How old are they?"

Vivian smiled so hard her face looked like it was about to shatter. "Oh! Well, Ayden is four and he looks _just_ like Cai, exactly. He's so adorable and he talks nonstop, all the time. He's my sweetheart." Vivian's eyes shone with so much love Valek felt it hard to resent her for making him an uncle. "And then there is Chiara who is so picky but she's my little princess and she looks just like me and Cia spoils her so much it's not even funny." Vivian rolled her eyes and sighed happily.

"How old is Chiara?" The Commander asked, sipping his tea.

"Around one and a half." Vivian grinned. "I can't wait to see them."

"We can see that." The Commander replied smoothly.

Vivian snorted. "Stop being a sourpuss. You'll love them too, I know it." She said confidently.

Once the initial love and excitement drained away, Valek was still left with a huge problem. "What do I get them?" He blurted out.

Vivian rolled her eyes. "It doesn't matter. Give Ayden a hug and he's love you forever and just give Chiara a pillow or something. She'll get so excited to have a new toy and she won't remember anyway."

Valek frowned. "No, that makes me look cheap and pathetic. They need something better."

Vivian gave him an amused look. "You do that. Tell me what you come up with."

**DID YOU LIKE VALEK'S REVENGE? NOT TERRIBLY CREATIVE BUT FITTING, I THINK. FINALLY! CAI AND THE BABIES ARE COMING! HOW EXCITING. ANY IDEAS ON GIFTS? THE ONLY REASON VALEK IS LOST IS BECAUSE I AM. HAHA. **


	7. Chapter 7

**SORRY FOR THE DELAY, I BLAME FINALS AND RL. NEW CHAPTER NOW THOUGH. ENJOY:**

**Disclaimer: same old, same old**

Vivian, Valek, Yelena and several soldiers stood outside the following week, waiting for Cai to arrive. Valek had settled on a sword sheath for Ayden; he couldn't use it now, but it would come in handy later. For Chiara, Valek had made a butterfly bracelet with emerald stones lining the wings.

"Are you sure they will be here soon?" Valek asked in a bored tone. "I have work to do." In reality, he didn't have much work left, but he didn't like standing outside, looking stupid.

Yelena gave him an amused glance. "You asked that 5 minutes ago, love. I'm pretty sure the answer is still the same."

Vivian crossed her arms, still wearing gloves on her hands. "Don't bother trying to reason with him, he's still got the mental capacity of a three year old."

"Looks like your son and I will get along quite well, then." Valek rolled his eyes.

Vivian snorted at him. "Ayden is four. Don't get it wrong or he's try to decapitate you with his stuffed sword."

"He has a stuffed sword?" Yelena asked, surprised. "Isn't he a little young to be walking around with weapons?"

Vivian shrugged. "I'll say. But Cai thinks it's important for him to be okay with weapons so he's got a stuffed one. Cai wanted to give him a wooden one, but I wouldn't allow it."

"You're husband sounds interesting." Yelena mused.

"Oh, he is. _Very interesting._" Valek mumbled.

Vivian's lips twitched. "What was that, Valek? You can't wait to see Cai again? I'll let him know."

Valek shot her a glare. "Don't start with me."

Yelena looked between the two, confused. "What's going on here?"

Vivian laughed. "Oh, Cai and Valek go way back. Don't you Valek?"

Valek raised an unimpressed eyebrow. "We've met on several occasions before Vivian's marriage. Let's just say he didn't give an impressive impression." He explained to Yelena.

Vivian snorted. "The fact that he was more focused on enjoying himself than killing is unimpressive? Valek, you were such a jerk back in the day."

"You still are one." Valek shot back smugly.

Vivian narrowed her eyes. "Don't get me started on your bad qualities, Valek. The list never ends."

Valek shrugged calmly and started to say something but Yelena cut him off. "So, why doesn't Valek like Cai?" She asked.

"It's not that I don't like him, I just don't approve…" Valek explained slowly.

Vivian burst out laughing. "One in the same, my dear." She directed at her cousin. "Valek doesn't think Cai is cut out for kingly positions or husbandry duties." She explained to Yelena.

Yelena was about to respond when she felt horses in her conscience. "They're close." She said.

Valek frowned at her. "How do you know?"

Yelena shrugged. "I can feel the horses' minds."

Vivian looked at Yelena in admiration. "Wow, what I would do with soulfinder powers." She shook her head and looked to the horizon, waiting for her family to arrive.

"Good thing you don't have soulfinder powers." Valek responded back with a smirk.

Vivian smiled and shook her head. Valek could almost see the transition between his cousin and the Queen. Vivian straightened and her face evened out, calm blue eyes scanning the eyes casually as she patiently waited for Cai and the kids.

Valek felt magic pulse through the air around him. It felt like cushions against his skin, like someone was hitting him with pillows. Every person's magic felt a little different. Vivian's was like a cushion, Yelena's was like hot, heavy air. He realized Vivian was talking to Cai with her mind when he felt a cold, icy sweep of magic settle around him as Cai responed to Vivian. They were really close now.

A few moments later, 15 soldiers, all armed, stopped in front of Vivian, Valek and the Ixian crew. Behind the soldiers was a deep purple carriage and Valek could hear a child talking in a foreign language. The soldiers were wearing grey and purple armor and jumped off their mounts to bow to Vivian before moving their horses to the side so Vivian could see the carriage in front of her.

Vivian smiled and nodded at the soldiers. "You're all ok, I trust. Victory?" The difference in her voice and tone was audible. Her voice was low and calm, her tone dignified.

One man nodded, Valek assumed he was the captain. "Of course, my lady." He smiled at her, his green eyes full of warmth and pride.

Just then, the door of the carriage swung open and a little boy stepped out, missing the step and falling flat on his face. He had a head full of dirty blond hair and was quite skinny for a four year old. Seconds later, Cai emerged from the carriage, missing the step, like his son and his foot nearly squashing Ayden's head. In Cai's arms was a little girl in a pink dress, looking like a miniature model of her mother.

Cai glanced down and frowned. "Son, what are you doing?" He asked in English. He had a slight accent.

Ayden flipped to his back dramatically and launched into a speech that Valek couldn't understand. Cai raised one eyebrow and shook his head amusedly at his son. He gently pulled Ayden up by the arm and whispered something in his ear. Ayden's head whipped around and settled on Vivian. "Mae!" He cried and ran toward her.

Vivian's face split into a grin and she crouched low, holding her arms out to her son. Ayden babbled happily in her arms, his hair constantly falling to his eyes and he brushed it away impatiently. Cai approached slowly, talking to his soldiers along the way. When he saw Ayden monopolizing Vivian's attention, he headed towards Valek.

"Hello again, old friend." Cai addressed Valek with his signature smirk. Cai's eyes were something between a stormy grey and a cloudy blue. They seemed to change color depending upon their mood. Right now, they were light and cloudy, he was happy.

"What is with you and Vivian calling me old? I'm not much older than you." Valek frowned. They were starting to get to him, this wasn't good.

Cai laughed. "I'm actually getting old according to my ancestry. Some gypsy lady along the way prophesized my death in less than a decade from now." He grinned. "I can't wait."

Valek shook his head. How Cai got anything done at all was a minor miracle. With such a nonchalant attitude, it was a surprise his soldiers trusted him enough to follow him into battle. "I can't wait either. For your death, that is." Valek responded in deadpan.

Cai laughed hard. For some reason, he got a kick out of bantering with Valek. Chiara squirmed in her father's arms, desperate to get to her mother. Cai stopped laughing long enough to put his daughter on the ground and make sure she was steady. He murmured something softly in another language and waved in Vivian's direction.

Vivian looked up and held her hand out to Chiara. Without further prompting, Chiara took off towards her mother, falling three times along the way. Valek winced as she fell. "You're children fall a lot." He noticed.

Cai laughed. "I'm afraid that would be my fault. I wasn't very stead on my feet as a child." His eyes danced as he watched his children and wife. Vivian hardly looked at Cai but Valek wasn't surprised. Vivian liked to show affection in private to all those except her children.

Cai turned back to Valek and noticed Yelena at his side. "Who is this?" Cai asked, holding his hand out to Yelena.

"This is Yelena. My heartmate. Yelena, Cai, Vivian's husband." He introduced them. Yelena smiled and gave Cai her hand, which he kissed lightly and then let go.

"You're a soul finder." He said quietly, his eyes curious.

Yelena frowned. "Yes, how did you know?"

Cai smiled softly. "my magic enables me to test the strength of others. You are extremely powerful."

Yelena nodded and Valek wrapped his arm around her as she mulled over his statement. "Do you know a lot about magic?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

Cai shrugged. "Enough." He flashed her another smile and then focused back on Valek. "Do you have barracks for my soldiers? I left most of them behind so we wouldn't overflow your castle like last time." He grinned.

Valek nodded and called for a maid to show the soldiers to their rooms. "I need to talk to Ambrose as well." Cai informed Valek.

Valek rolled his eyes. "You're a very high maintenance guest."

Cai grinned. "Only when you're my host." And with that, he headed over to his family; prying his kids off his wife long enough to receive a kiss before he headed off with his soldiers, to make sure they were on their best behavior.

Yelena watched him go and turned to Valek. "He doesn't act very kingly." She observed.

Valek nodded. "I've rarely seen him serious. The only time you can tell that he's a king is when he talks about money and how little it means to him."

Yelena raised an eyebrow. "So he doesn't like money? He didn't seem like the simple type."

Valek shook his head. "Other way around. He has so much of it he doesn't care if he wastes it."

"Ah, I see."

"Mhm."

Vivian walked up the Valek and Yelena, Chiara in one arm and Ayden holding her other hand. She looked down at Ayden and told him to say hi. Ayden tilted his head back to look at Valek's face. He said something happily and then flung himself at Valek, hugging his legs. Valek looked down in surprise and confusion. "What is he doing?" Valek asked Vivian.

Vivian laughed. "Hugging you. He's excited to meet you. I've told him about you." She winked.

Valek willed the butterflies in his stomach to settle. This was just a kid, for heaven's sake. "It's a pleasure to meet you." He smiled as he gently pried Ayden off his leg. "I have a gift for you." He took off the sword holder at his hip and held it to Ayden. "Here."

Ayden grabbed it and looked at it in awe. He then turned to Vivian and started babbling to her excitedly, waving the sword holder around. Vivian smiled and said something back and Ayden once again flung himself at his uncle.

Valek was slightly more ready this time and caught Ayden, giving him a small hug in return. Ayden took the opportunity and wrapped his arms and legs around Valek's torso, forcing Valek to carry him. Valek shook his head in amusement but picked up the little boy anyway.

Vivian grinned at the two of them. "See? He likes you already." She laughed.

Valek rolled his eyes and held a hand out to Chiara. She looked at him mistrustfully and turned back to her mother, burying her little face in Vivian's hair. Vivian rolled her eyes. "It takes Chiara slightly longer to get attached to people."

Valek grinned and shrugged. He was okay if Chiara didn't like him. One less kid for him to please. "Well, I made this for her; you can put it on her or give it to her whenever you want." He held out the little bracelet he'd made.

"Aw. That's so cute!" Vivian looked at it and smiled, but didn't take it. "No, you have to put it on her. It's your gift, not mine." Valek sighed and rolled his eyes. Of course, his life couldn't be that easy.

In the meantime, Ayden had gotten acquainted with Yelena and was now busy touching her hair. Yelena laughed and kissed his forehead. "He's so adorable, Vivian." She squealed in delight.

Vivian grinned as she saw Ayden lean out of Valek's arms to get a better grip on Yelena's hair. "Be careful, Yelena. He likes to pull." And right on cue, Ayden yanked Yelena's hair and giggled.

"Ouch!" Yelena yelped, rubbing her scalp. She frowned at Ayden. "No, don't pull my hair."

He reached out for her again but Yelena dodged his small hand, this time. "Oh, no. We are not doing this again." She laughed slightly.

Ayden pouted and said something to her in his native tongue. Yelena turned to Vivian for translation. Vivian burst out laughing when she heard her son. "He's trying to flatter you into letting him touch your hair again. He just said you were the prettiest girl he's ever seen."

"Aw." Yelena cooed and held her hands out to Ayden. He happily climbed from Valek's grasp into Yelena's and began playing with her hair again. "If you pull again, I'll put you on the ground." Yelena told him very seriously. Ayden looked up at her serious expression and became somber. He said something unintelligible and stroked Yelena's hair reverently.

"He's about to pull." Cai appeared out of nowhere and warned Yelena a millisecond before Ayden tried to pull her hair. Yelena caught his wrist this time and lowered him to the ground. "I told you so." She said, shaking her head as Ayden tried to stay in her arms.

After realizing Yelena wasn't about to pick him up any time soon, Ayden wandered over to Valek and held up his hands, indicating that he wanted to be held. Valek grinned and shook his head. He wasn't about to fall into the same trap. "Sorry, kid. Master assassins don't get their hair pulled by four year olds. That's just humiliating."

Cai grinned and hoisted Ayden onto his shoulders. "Is Ambrose ready to see me?" He asked Valek.

"Unfortunately." Valek smirked and led the way as Ayden tried to pull Cai's short hair.

**DID YOU LIKE THE FAMILY? MORE CAI, AYDEN, CHIARA FUN NEXT CHAPTER. SORRY FOR ANY MISTAKES, I'M FALLING ASLEEP IN MY CHAIR. **

**PLEASE LEAVE ME REVIEWS. REVIEWS ARE WHAT KEEPS THIS STORY ALIVE AND GOING. **


	8. Chapter 8

**YEAY! I UPDATED BEFORE 6 MONTHS! HAHA. I'M SORRY THIS STORY IS GOING SO SLOW GUYS. I'M JUST SO BUSY. I BELIEVE THIS IS A LITTLE SHORTER CHAPTER THAN THE LAST ONE, BUT REST ASSURED, THERE IS ALOT OF FAMILY FUN INVOLVED. **

**Disclaimer: Don't own nada**

Cai slapped a map down after the initial greetings with the Commander. "Just as I promised." He grinned and pulled out several other maps as well and lined them up like a puzzle. "Here is Lineate, my homeland." He pointed to the far end of the extended map. "And here," He pointed to the other end of the map, nearest to the Commander, "is Ixia. And here are all the countries in between." He waved his hand vaguely to the rest of the map. Then he pointed to a bright purple trail. "And this is the path I use to come to Ixia, in case you ever feel like visiting." He looked at Valek then, raising an eyebrow and smiling.

Valek rolled his eyes. "Don't hold your breath. You may die before your two weeks are up."

Cai laughed. "Too true. Too true." Then he turned back to the Commander, who was pouring over the map before him. "Satisfied, my lord?" He asked, teasing slightly.

The Commander's lips twitched and Valek could tell he was abused by the title Cai had jokingly given to him. "It'll do." The Commander replied. "You mentioned that you would provide a brief description of each nation if you had time…" He looked up at Cai expectantly.

Cai shrugged casually. "You have high expectations, my lord. If I was to do your bidding, my nation would probably fall apart from neglect."

The Commander frowned. "I see…so you'll be able to tell me verbally, then?" He stared up at Cai with his signature stern expression.

"I can." Cai's face broke out into a smile. "Or you can flip the maps over and read the descriptions written there. I can't vouch for the accuracy or comprehensiveness, however. I tried reading and translating myself but I didn't have much time and somethings simply take too much energy to translate properly from my language to yours."

The Commander flipped over the Ixian map and skimmed the descriptions written there. "So you don't know what is written on here?"

"I have a general idea. I told you I'd get it done if I could. This was the best I could do given the present circumstances. Besides, I know for a fact that the maps are accurate and I'm sure the descriptions are decent enough." He leaned over the Commander's shoulder to read Ixia's descriptions. "Sounds good: Strict commander that never dies, insane chief of security, machine like army containing some poetic soldiers, and no magic allowed unless your happen to be the chief's lover. Yeah, it's accurate."

Valek frowned and read the descriptions himself. It seemed that Cai had given them an extended embellished version when he'd read out loud. "So did you give the map maker information on Ixia and Sitia?" He asked.

"Well, obviously, I wasn't about to let my map maker figure it out on his own. He would have taken years. The other nations were done solely by him, though. He's knowledge is quite extensive, considering he's a popular merchant." Cai replied, pulling Ayden off his shoulders. "Son, I'm already as close to bald as I can be. Please, don't try to make it worse. You're only hurting yourself." He titled his head away from his son's outstretched hand.

The Commander finally spoke up. "Hmm…thank you. I will review this and ask you to clarify a few points later on."

Cai frowned. "Clarify? Like what?"

"Well, it says here that Sitia has abnormally large families, and only six of them." The Commander's eyes twinkled in amusement though his mouth remained a straight line.

"Sitia has more than six families. Perhaps he means six major tribes?" Yelena offered.

"Yes, I'm sure that's what he meant. His English is slightly flawed. I didn't have time to teach him everything." Cai's eyebrows knit together and he was about to continue when Ayden suddenly screamed.

Everyone turned to see Ayden's hand in Chiara's hair and her teeth in his wrist. Vivian gently tried to pry Chiara's mouth off Ayden's hand but if anything, Chiara only bit down harder. Tears welled up in Ayden's eyes but he refused to let go of Chiara's hair. "Ayden." Vivian said reprovingly, but he just shook his head and continued to pull.

"I wonder where they get their belligerence from…" The Commander mused and then looked from Vivian to Valek. They looked at each other and burst out laughing while Cia grinned and continued to try to coax Chiara into letting Ayden go.

Yelena looked at each of them and frowned. "What am I missing?" She asked.

"Nothing. Trust me; you're better off in the dark." Cai smirked and gave up on his children, they could dish out revenge to one another.

"He's right." The commander said, rolling his eyes. "The last time Vivian visited, she and Valek had a poison off in which they attempted to kill one another." Vivian and Valek tried to protest but the Commander cut them off. "Valek got Vivian with a hallucinogen and she bit him while suffering from the effects of the poison. In return, Vivian spiked Valek's drink with an extreme pain causing potion and he managed to grab a hold of her hair while convulsing in pain." He explained all of this with the mildness with which he spoke of his breakfast.

Yelena looked horrified. "Why would you do that to each other?"

Vivian sighed. "It was a game that got a little out of hand. One, Valek had it coming to him. And two, how was I supposed to know Valek would be stupid enough to drink his water without testing it first?"

Valek made a face. "I didn't think you'd be petty enough to spike my water." He glared at Vivian and she stuck out her tongue back. "Plus, I didn't think the hallucinogen would work on Vivian because she is immune to many other poisons." He explained to Yelena.

Yelena snorted. "That hardly justifies anything. And why am I getting a feeling there is more to this story?"

Cai grinned. "There is a little more but the exciting part is over. I stepped in shortly afterwards and threatened to lock up Vivian and break all of Valek's statues if they didn't stop. This got both their attentions and then they decided to team up and come after me."

"Let me guess. They poisoned you too?" Yelena asked, not sure she wanted to know.

Cai shook his head. "No. I'm boring to poison, I just puke and moan and smell and make everyone miserable. They tried to tie me up and steal my crown to destroy it but between me and my right hand man, we had enough magic to immobilize Valek and I had enough leverage on Vivian to convince her that one on one revenge would be a better idea." He smirked and winked.

"But why would you steal his crown? You have to live with him and isn't that kind of important for him to be king?" Yelena asked Vivian.

Vivian waved her hand casually. "Naw, it's not that necessary. Everyone in Lineate knows what Cai looks like. Its more on an inconvenience than a necessity for him to have to make new one. Besides, we were only going to destroy his everyday crown, not the major ceremonial one."

"There is a difference?" Yelena asked. "Why?"

"Because I'm supposed to wear a crown, as per tradition; but the ceremonial crown is expensive, even by my standards and it also weighs a ridiculous amount and doesn't fit well on my head for extended amounts of time. So, I made myself a newer, lighter, cheaper one that fits amazingly on my head for days at a time without making those horrendous lines on my flawless forehead." Cai grinned.

"I doubt anything fits well on your head for any amount of time. Your head is so big I'm surprised it even fits through the doorway." Valek snickered.

"Well, if yours fits, it's no wonder his gets through just fine." Vivian shot back, smirking.

"Children…" Cai started and then Chiara suddenly let go of Ayden's wrist. She looked up at her smiling mother and started cooing cutely.

Valek frowned. "Does she have mood problems? One minute she's killing her brother and the next she's acting like the most innocent creature on the planet."

Cai laughed. "What do you expect from Vivian's child? I fear for any man who comes her way."

Vivian slapped Cai upside his head and then handed Chiara to him. "Hold your daughter while I look at Ayden's wrist. It's turning colors."

Vivian carefully examined her son and then let go of his hand. "He'll be fine, I think." Vivian said and gently kissed his cheek to make him feel better.

"Would you like me to heal him?" Yelena held out her hands, loathing seeing Ayden in pain.

Cai shook his head. "Leave it. Perhaps this will help remind him that pulling hair isn't the way to go." He glanced over at his son who was busy examining the kaleidoscope of colors on his wrist.

"Mae!" Ayden burst out excitedly and then tapped his mom with one hand while shoving his wrist in her face with the other. "Ha!" He pointed to a purple spot on his skin and started chattering away.

"Clearly he hasn't learned his lesson." Cai sighed.

"What do you expect?" Vivian smirked at her husband. "He's a slow learner just like his father."

Cai shook his head and laughed. "All's fair in love and war, right Vivian?"

Yelena rolled her eyes. "Another story?"

Vivian grinned and nodded. "Yup. But for another day. We need to put these minis to bed." She gestured to Chiara who was snuggled against her father's neck.

Valek showed them their suit and headed back to his own, happy to be alone with Yelena at last. "Finally, we got rid of them." He grinned and stalked towards her when there were alone. "How long will you be staying?"

"The rest of the month." Yelena gave Valek a sultry smile.

"Then we better make the most of it." He grinned and pulled her into his arms. Before he could continue, however, someone knocked on his door. Both Valek and Yelena groaned. "This better be good." Valek growled and yanked the door open.

Before him stood Ayden, wearing little blue pjs, holding his stuffed sword in one hand and a book in the other. He smiled up at Valek and hugged his leg, mumbling something incomprehensible. Valek groaned as Yelena squealed in delight at seeing Ayden. This was going to be a long night.

**DID YOU GUYS ENJOY THAT? I LOVE THE ENDING. VALEK'S GOING TO SPEND SOME QUALITY TIME WITH AYDEN AND CHIARA IN THE NEAR FUTURE. HE STILL NEEDS TO GIVE CHIARA HER GIFT, REMEMBER?**


	9. Chapter 9

**MKAY, NEW CHAPPY. SOME DRAMA. I HAVE NO IDEA WHERE I'M GOING WITH THIS. THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS! ENJOY: **

**Disclaimer: Ayden is mine. You can have the rest. : )**

VPOV

Valek woke up in the morning knowing something was distinctly wrong. Yelena was in his arms and he couldn't sense any magic but something was pressing very uncomfortably into his hip. He looked down to find a small heel imbedded in his skin. Who was this? Ah, yes, Ayden.

Ayden had decided that he didn't want to go back to his parents even after Yelena had made up a hundred stories to tell him in a language he didn't even understand. While Valek couldn't fault the child for not wanting to sleep in the same room as his demonic sister, there was a real problem with him sharing Valek and Yelena's bed.

A glance at the window told him it was still before dawn. Not a bad time to wake up. And the clashes of steel outside also told him that unfortunately, Cai and his soldiers were up as well, training at such an ungodly hour. Groaning, he decided that training with Cai would be more beneficial for him than his own soldiers. So he rolled out of bed and changed, skipping the early morning shower since he knew he'd need one after his work out with Cai.

Cai's shirt was already drenched with sweat when Valek joined him outside. "Good morning, sleeping beauty." Cai called out as Valek did his warm up laps. Valek flipped him a choice finger, too out of breath to bother with a proper response.

"Alright, men. Break up into sparring groups and try not to inflict severe wounds. Ixia doesn't have healers." Cai ordered as Valek approached him. "Will you be my partner, Valek?" He asked teasingly. "I've always wanted to spar with a girl."

Valek gave him an unimpressed look. "Spar with a girl? More like beat a girl since your wife probably kicks your sad ass every time you challenge her."

Cai shrugged. "Perhaps. But you just admitted you're a girl."

Valek shrugged back. "I'm safe enough in my manhood that I don't need to defend myself in front of petty insults. You on the other hand…"

Cai laughed and flipped Valek a sword. "Keep telling yourself that, Grandpa. Old rules?"

"Yes. And keep your son in your own room at night if you want me to continue putting up with you. That kid has way too much energy." Valek responded, testing the weight of the sword. Old rules meant that Valek could hit Cai anywhere since Cai could heal himself, but Cai had to make sure his attacks were light enough that Valek would be able to continue his duties even after the sparring rounds.

"Oh, sorry about that. I didn't even know Ayden was gone until this morning. What did he do last night?" Cai asked, circling Valek.

"How is he even alive if you don't know he's missing?" Valek asked, swinging his sword at Cai's neck.

"Vivian knows." Cai responded casually, dodging and swiping at Valek's legs.

Valek rolled his eyes. "That child never sleeps. I made him an obstacle course, hoping he'd get tired, but he never did."

Cai snickered. "Clearly your obstacle course making skills are lacking. You should have had him do pushups with you. He enjoys those and jumping jacks a lot."

Valek looked at him incredulously and nicked his arm. "You train with Ayden already?"

"Well, he's there when I train at home. It's not like I can stop him." Cai said defensively, dancing out of the way of another attack.

"And Vivian's ok with it?" Valek pressed forward.

"If she doesn't let him take out energy that way, he'll drive her insane." Cai shifted off the defensive and launched himself at Valek.

Valek shifted to the side and nearly sliced Cai's chest. "You two are fools to have children."

Cai's face contorted in concentration as he his sword sliced Valek's shoulder. Valek ducked back and applied pressure to the wound, noting that it looked worse than it was.

"You okay?" Cai asked, backing off slightly to make sure he hadn't broken the rules. Valek nodded and raised his sword again, ready. "Right, what you said before. You only feel that way about children because you don't have any."

Valek frowned. He doubted that. Any child of his would probably turn out messed up. What kind of life would it be to constantly have to look over your shoulder?

"Come on, boys. Stop chit chatting and get to the good stuff." Vivian's voice sliced through the momentary stand still.

Valek glanced over to see a worried looking Yelena seated next to a bored looking Vivian on the bench; both watching the fight. Valek flashed Yelena a smile, knowing that she didn't like the sight of his bloody shoulder.

"Yes, my lady." Cai saluted Vivian playfully and turned back to Valek. "Come on, dear brother in law, let's finish this."

Cai's "finish this" meant another long and tedious strings of attacks and defenses that made both men drip in blood at the end. Cai was clearly worse since he decided to heal himself once everything was over and his wounds were more severe. Valek was covered in a series of small cuts. Painful but doable, and with the special ointment Vivian had given him years ago, he'd be able to clean himself up quite nicely.

"Good job." Cai nodded to Valek afterward, whipping most of the blood off his body with the towel Vivian provided him.

Valek was about to respond when some soldiers started yelling. Vivian was on her feet and running before anyone else knew what had even happened. Valek watched as Vivian raced toward Ayden, who was attempting to run away from a very angry dog. And from the extremely small distance between the child and the animal, it looked like Ayden wouldn't last long.

The dog growled and nearly took a bite out of Ayden's back when fire burst out of nowhere, separating the two. Vivian caught Ayden in her arms and held him close to her body while she made the fire spread farther, forcing the angry dog to retreat. Once she was sure the dog wouldn't try to attack Ayden again, she let the fire die down slowly and turned her stern gaze onto her son.

Ayden cowered back and Valek couldn't blame the poor kid. Valek would rather get a chunk taken out of his backside than face Vivian's true wrath. Vivian's voice was low and calm but Valek didn't need to hear or understand what she was saying to know that Ayden's vacation in Ixia had just taken a downturn. Ayden's face slowly dropped until he had tears in his large blue eyes. When Vivian finished her lecture, she turned and headed back to the castle, Ayden trailing her like a lost puppy.

Everyone was quiet for a moment before the chatter started back up again. "Is he going to be okay?" Yelena asked Cai quietly.

Cai sighed and ran a hand through his short hair, tugging lightly. "Yeah. He'll be fine. And I'll get Vivian to ease up. He just scared the living daylights out of her."

"It wasn't that bad…" Yelena frowned. "I mean, sure the dog would bite him, but he can always be healed, right? It's not like he's going to die…"

Valek answered her this time. "Vivian has very bad experiences with dogs. Her friend got torn into pieces by a pack of rabid ones when she was young. She hasn't liked dogs ever since."

Yelena blanched. "She saw her friend get chewed apart? That's…terrible."

Cai nodded. "Yeah. She's not as scared of them now as she was before, but it still makes her nervous when they start growling and chasing."

Yelena nodded. "That makes sense now, I guess…So will Ayden be punished for making a dog mad?"

"I wouldn't call it punished. More like sheltered; he's going to have to be in Vivian's sight from now on, which is kind of impossible for a kid like him." Cai explained.

"And how will you ease up the sentence?" Valek asked, raising an eyebrow.

Cai smiled slowly. "I'll be the good husband and offer to share the burden of watching him, of course."

"Why does she even trust you?" Valek wondered out loud.

Cai laughed. "Truly, I don't know. But I'd still take care of Ayden, you have to know that. I might not be as vigilant as Vivian, but I do know how to protect him."

"So what would you have done if Vivian hadn't been here just now?" Yelena asked curiously.

Cai thought for a moment. "Probably lift Ayden in the air using my magic so he got a good dose of fear for his foolishness but he would be completely safe."

"Another one of the many reasons I don't recommend having children." Valek muttered.

Cai shrugged and glanced toward the castle. "I'm going to go have a battle of wills with Vivian now. Wish me luck." He smiled and saluted them before jogging off.

"I'm beginning to see what you mean about Cai's laxness." Yelena mumbled out of the side of her mouth.

YPOV

Things had gone back to normal by dinner, thankfully. Vivian was smiling and relaxed again and Cai had his arm around her waist, meaning that his persuasion had probably gone well. Chiara was holding the bruised hand of her brother as she walked around, examining the funny colors her teeth had caused on his skin. She gurgled something with a smile and poked his wrist and giggled as Ayden yelped in pain. She tried to poke him again but Vivian caught her hand and gave her the Look.

Dinner with Vivian's family was always an adventure. Chiara decided that being fed was out of style and she was old enough to eat with a spoon now. This meant that she'd have to use her hands to put food into her spoon and then grab both the spoon and the food in both her hands and stuff the whole thing into her mouth. Suffice to say, this method of eating wasn't very efficient.

Ayden found his sister to be very amusing and decided that because he was the older brother, he should assist her in eating. As could be expected, his help was rather unhelpful. He tried to feed her his water with a spoon after she spilled most of her food on her dress and ended up adding water to the mix. Chiara poked her fingers at her dress and found that she quite liked the mess she had made and she'd like to try the new recipe of foods. This led her to try to eat her dress which finally made Vivian take action and put a stop to this nonsense.

Yelena loved watching Vivian's kids. They were so entertaining and adorable and now that Ayden and Vivian had settled whatever had happened, they were such a source of happiness Yelena wanted kids too. But she knew that convincing Valek would be a large task. One she wasn't quite ready to take up yet. So, instead, she settled on feeding Ayden and laughing at him as he tried to grab her hair in the process.

Vivian smiled warmly at Yelena when she asked if she could keep Ayden for the night. With Vivian's consent, Yelena spent another night adoring the child she wished was her own. And at night, she put in to sleep in his own room because Valek refused to share a bed with him. But judging from how little Valek complained that night, Yelena suspected he was warming up to Ayden too.

**OK, SO A LITTLE DEPRESSING IN THE MIDDLE, BUT THE END MADE UP FOR IT, RIGHT? I LOVE WATCHING LITTLE KIDS EAT, IT'S HILLARIOUS. AS ALWAYS, PLEASE SEND ME SOME LOVE. NO CHANCE OF VALEK HAVING KIDS IN THIS STORY BUT I'M PLANNING ON ANOTHER ONE WITH CHILDREN. DON'T START PARTYING YET THOUGH! THIS NEEDS TO FINISH BEFORE I CAN PUT SOMETHING NEW UP.**


	10. Chapter 10

**ALRIGHT, MORE FUN! ENJOY: **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything, not even Ayden or Chiara. Sobs.**

Valek POV

The next week passed in a blur of Ayden Chiara drama. Valek could feel himself warming up to both slowly but still didn't feel entirely comfortable every time Ayden threw himself at Valek's legs. Plus, there was the added annoyance of Ayden sleeping in Valek's suit every night; at least the child had his own room now.

Valek noticed how much Yelena loved Ayden and he feared that she might one day want children too. That was something Valek couldn't even fathom, as his own childhood had been so painful. He desperately hopped that Yelena wouldn't confront him about having children. He didn't want to tell her no but he also knew he was nowhere near ready for the responsibility.

One day, Valek walked back for his meeting with the Commander to find Yelena packing. "Where are you going?" He asked, leaning against the doorway, arching an eyebrow.

Yelena looked up and smiled. "Ah, there you are. Vivian and I are going to a lake in Sitia for a girls-only vacation. You and Cai get to take care of Ayden and Chiara." Her eyes danced with mischief and Valek groaned.

"Really? What kind of soul mate are you if you just intend on leaving me alone with those three?" He asked incredulously.

Yelena tilted her head back and laughed. "Hey, you're the master assassin, I'm sure you'll survive." She patted his cheek and stuffed all her clothes into a bag.

Valek sighed. "When are you leaving and coming back?" He asked. At least he wouldn't have to sleep with Ayden anymore since Yelena wouldn't be there.

"Leaving tonight and coming back in four days. Think you can handle that?" Yelena put her hand on her hips and smiled amusedly.

"No." Valek pouted. "When did you come up with this plan? I'd really like to join you for this vacation."

Yelena snickered. "No way. You and Cai can bond. Try to learn how to talk to Ayden too, he really likes you."

Valek rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath. Yelena laughed at him. "Don't worry. I'll be back before you know it. And Vivian and the crew are leaving soon so then we'll have all the time we need to ourselves." She smiled at him, her eyes dancing.

Valek's eyes narrowed. "And how do you know they will be leaving soon?" He asked skeptically.

"Vivian told me." Yelena crossed her arms and grinned back at him.

"She was just trying to guilt trip you into taking a vacation with her. You should refuse." Valek suggested.

Yelena snickered. "Vivian told me you'd be saying that. No. I asked Cai too when they were leaving and he said soon as well."

Valek rolled his eyes. "You do realize that Cai would lie for Vivian, right?" He was totally convinced that Vivian was trying to get back at him for their old feud.

Yelena laughed again, clearly enjoying Valek's discomfort. Valek resolved to kick Vivian out of Ixia very soon; she was quickly corrupting his lover. "Fine, go have fun." He sighed. "I'll be waiting here like yesterday's garbage, waiting for you to pick me up and throw me away." He slumped his shoulders and walked away sadly.

"Aw…" Yelena grabbed his arm and drew him back in the room. "Thank you for letting me go." She smiled and kissed him. "Now let me give you a proper goodbye."

Valek's face split into a grin. Now this was what he was talking about.

The next day, when Valek woke up, he realized that his goodbye with Yelena hadn't been nearly as long as he would like and idly wondered what would happen if he tracked down Yelena and Vivian and interrupted their vacation. He settled on staying in Ixia, Vivian would probably kick him and out, and besides, what was the worst Cai and the kids could do?

He didn't even have to wait for a day to find the answer. When Valek went outside for his early morning training, he saw Ayden running through the legs of fighting soldiers. Cai's soldiers seemed to be used to it and thought of it as an extra challenge to stay focused, but the few Ixian soldiers that had showed up were getting seriously messed up. And that wasn't even the worst part, the worst part was that Chiara was sitting on the ground, grabbing dirt and looking at her brother every now at then as if she wanted to join him.

Cai casually strolled up to Valek. "Let's spar. What do you say?" He asked, his eyes a light blue and an easy smile adorning his face.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea." Valek looked pointedly at Ayden, who was currently hitting an already busy soldier behind the knees with his stuffed sword.

Cai laughed. "Oh, don't worry about him. He'll know to stay away if we get too serious." He handed Valek a sword.

Valek looked at Ayden incredulously and seriously doubted Cai's abilities as a father. "Right…" He said slowly and got into position.

Cai and Valek circled slowly as Valek's eyes danced around to make sure Ayden was far enough away and Chiara hadn't moved from her spot on the ground. The sparring slowly sped up and Valek flitted to the right, hoping to get a clear shot at Cai's side. Cai's body curved and Valek narrowly missed, jumping back just in time to stay clear of Cai's aim at his thigh. As both Valek and Cai slowly got into their zones, their movements sped up and their attacks became fiercer. Soon, the sounds of their swords clashing drowned out the sounds of everything else.

Suddenly, as Valek was bringing his sword down fast and hard at Cai's shoulder, Cai moved back and Chiara's head appeared out of nowhere. Valek tried to stop the momentum of his sword but ended up changing the angle so it narrowly missed Chiara's head but sliced Valek's thigh instead. He let out a loud curse and hissed as he applied pressure to the wound.

He looked up, ready to yell at Chiara for popping out of nowhere but saw that it was, in fact Ayden who was holding her up between the two men and Cai was now frantically trying to get something out of Chiara's mouth. She looked a little pale and Valek wondered if she'd been choking.

He slowly moved toward Cai as he tried to pry Chiara's mouth open. "What happened?" Valek asked.

"Ayden said Chiara was eating a bug, I think she swallowed it." Valek tried to hold back his disgust but even Cai looked a little green. Cai managed to open his daughter's mouth and put one hand over his own to stop from puking as he slid a finger down her through to induce vomit.

Chiara promptly retched out everything she'd been eating onto her father's face, shoulders and chest. Valek thanked fate that he was not in range of her projectile bile. Ayden squealed out in disgust and dropped Chiara, causing her to start screaming and crying as she hit the ground. Thank fate Ayden had only been holder her two inches above the ground. Cai looked absolutely miserable as he tried to clean up himself and get her daughter under control.

Valek took a deep breath and decided to be a good cousin-in-law and finally help out. He picked up the screaming, disgusting little girl in one arm and gave Cai a towel with the other hand. "I'm going to take her to the medic to get cleaned up. Join me when you can." He said, trying to touch Chiara as little as possible.

The medic took one look at Chiara and told Valek to give her to one of the new helpers. Valek couldn't help but feel sorry for whoever would have to clean Chiara up. "And what happened to you?" The medic asked Valek, raising an eyebrow.

"Knife cut." Valek said shortly and waited patiently for the medic to bring him some salve. Once the medic was done, Valek checked on Chiara to make sure she was okay before heading to the bath. After cleaning himself up, he started to feel guilty about leaving his niece with a stranger and went to check on her again.

Thankfully, by the time he got back, Cai and Ayden were there, both cleaned up and looking much better. When Ayden saw Valek, he let go of his father's hand and run to Valek, hugging his injured thigh. Valek valiantly restrained himself from cursing and throwing the little boy off as pain shot through his leg. "Please…stop." Valek gritted out and pried Ayden away.

Ayden looked up at Valek, his little face full of hurt and he mumbled something quietly before trying to slink away. Valek cursed his softening heart and picked up Ayden. "It's ok. I'm just injured there." Valek explained, knowing full well that Ayden didn't understand what was being said. But Ayden seemed to realize that Valek wasn't angry and this revelation brought a big smile to the boy's face. Valek smile back but quickly stopped when Ayden hugged his neck…or tried to cut off his air supply.

Cai approached Valek, holding a sleeping Chiara in his arms; he looked equally exhausted. "Thank you Valek." He said tiredly and smiled as he saw Ayden in Valek's arms. "You can put Ayden down, I think we're all going to take a nap, it's been a long morning."

Valek seconded that notion but he could see that Ayden would not be able to nap. That boy was just too full of energy. Against his better judgment, Valek offered to keep Ayden. "He can stay with me. Neither of us is really tired, I'll keep him occupied with my obstacle course skills." Valek smiled and swatted Ayden's hand away from his hair.

Cai frowned skeptically. "Are you sure?" He asked.

Valek nodded. "Yes. How long do you plan on napping? I'm sure we'll survive two hours together."

Cai nodded gratefully. "Thanks again."

While Valek was beginning to accept his love for Ayden, he began to realize that babysitting him would be no easy task. Simply on the way back to his suite, Ayden refused to get down from his arms and instead, crawled up to his shoulders and used Valek's hair for stability.

The moment Valek managed to get back in his room and pry the child off his head, a messenger came in and told him the Commander wished to see him. Valek had no choice but to take Ayden along. With Ayden's sense of curiosity, he'd probably end up breaking all of Valek's statues.

When Valek entered the room to talk to the Commander, he was met with raised eyebrows and a small smirk. "Don't ask." Valek groaned and sat in a chair, allowing Ayden to run around and try to steal pens off the table.

By the time dinner rolled around, Valek was exhausted. Ayden had refused to go back to his father the whole day and Valek was relieved that Cai had finally put his foot down and was dragging his son back to their suite for the night. Why had he ever thought he'd be able to take care of this kid?

**A LITTLE SHORTER THAN USUAL BUT DID YOU HAVE FUN? NEXT CHAPTER'S GONNA BE KID-FILLED AS WELL. PLEASE DROP A REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK. OR ANY FUNNY CHILDHOOD STORIES YOU MAY HAVE ;)**


	11. Chapter 11

**THANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS AND STORIES GUYS! I HAD SO MUCH FUN READING THEM, VERY INSPIRATIONAL ;) THIS CHAPTER IS MOSTLY VALEK AND CHIARA, I HOPE YOU FIND IT AS AMUSING AS I DID. ENJOY:**

**Disclaimer: Chiara would be a happy baby if I was making money off this.**

In the couple of days that passes, twenty of Valek's soldiers fell ill with the flu. Twice as many of Cai's soldiers became sick as well. While Cai's soldiers magically healed themselves, however, Valek's were stuck in the infirmary. And guess who decided to join them? None other than Ayden. And Cai, being the fool he was, refused to heal his son using magic.

"I think you've been hit on the head one to many times with a sword." Valek offered to Cai when he came to visit Ayden in the infirmary.

Cai gave Valek an annoyed look as he placed a wet towel on his son's forehead. "Didn't your parents teach you to keep your mouth shut if you don't have anything important to say?"

Valek snorted. "No, everything I say is crucial to survival. Tell me again why you refuse to heal Ayden."

Cai chucked a used rag at Valek's face. "It's because the prolonged use of magic leads to resistance. For example, if someone is gradually given small doses of poison, over time, their body will become immune to it. A similar thing happens with magic. A person may not become entirely immune, but it will gradually take more and more magic to heal them. This is my current problem. I was injured and healed so much as a child that it now takes twice the amount of magic to seal a cut. Ayden gets hurt a lot too. I'd rather his body learns to heal itself and hopefully he gets a little common sense in the meantime so we can save the magic for the big stuff." He drew his hands away from his son quickly as Ayden rolled over and puked in a bucket next to the bed.

Valek wrinkled his nose at the smell and let the topic go. "Where's Chiara?"

"Oh, I met this really nice lady who offered to take care of her. She's the castle seamstress, I believe. She's a fate-send, I swear." Cai helped Ayden rinse out his mouth.

"You just handed off your daughter to someone you didn't know? What if she was a child killer?" Valek asked incredulously.

"Then Vivian and I would just have to have more children." Cai said blithely. "Besides, if she was a child killer, I doubt she'd be working for the Commander. He usually has better judgment when it comes to picking employees." He paused for a bit before continuing. "On the other hand, he does allow you to work for him...so...you never know." He shrugged and grinned.

Valek tossed the rag back at Cai's head. "Why Vivian thought you were mature enough for children is beyond me." He turned and walked away, wondering how Cai could be so carefree. Valek felt such a sense of responsibility when it came to children. He wanted to check on Chiara to make sure she was okay and he didn't even like her.

A few hours later, Valek realized he should be much more careful about what he wished for. He'd wanted to check on Chiara to make sure she was okay, but for some reason, fate thought he wanted to take _care _of her. Why? _Why? Why? Why? _

As Valek held Chiara in his arm that was all he could think of: What was he doing here with this child who hated him? And he had to take her to dinner with him too!

As if she had been thinking the same thing, Chiara placed her little hands on Valek's shoulders and glared at him with her icy blue eyes. She grumbled growled something when he glared right back and then squirmed to be put on the ground. Valek happily acquiesced. Though he would never admit it, Chiara scared him slightly.

She smiled triumphantly and strut around his living room as if she owned it. Valek shrugged and went to his desk to do his work. Chiara didn't seem like she needed constant attention. She was pretty content in herself.

Valek was so immersed in his work he didn't notice the unusual silence at first. But then, he felt something tugging at the edge of his consciousness and knew something was wrong. He finished the sentence he was writing and then slowly scanned the room, looking for anything out of place. He took in the haphazardly stacked books, the cushions strewn on the floor, and then his eyes landed on the ripped page of a book and he suddenly remembered there was a child in his suite.

Valek ran through all the rooms, turning his house upside down in an attempt to find Chiara. Everywhere he looked, he could see evidence that she'd been there but he couldn't find her. At last, he found himself in front of his carving room door. He silently opened the door and peeked inside. At first, he didn't see anything out of the ordinary, but once he stepped in and took a few steps to the left, he saw a little hand peeking out behind a table.

He ghosted around, curious as to what Chiara was doing. And when he saw, he nearly died. Chiara sat on the floor, with six statues around her, carefully painting them rainbow colors, and when she got bored of that, she would make designs with black ink and once her masterpiece was complete, she shoved it under another heavy table, effectively breaking the final product. From the debris around her, Valek estimated that Chiara had already destroyed three statues. She did all this with obvious delight and Valek swore that she would never step in his room again, and if she did, he'd have to confiscate all artistic items beforehand.

"Chiara." He growled from behind her, crossing his arms across his chest.

She froze, her paint tip hovering just about a humming bird's beak. Slowly she looked up and observed Valek's expression. Seeing that he probably wouldn't be softened if she cried, Chiara scowled at him back, as if he was the one antagonizing her.

Valek frowned at the audacity of this child. Most people knew to cower in front of him, but not his niece. She was so much like her mother. "I will lock you in a cage. Get out of the room." He said, his voice quiet and hard. He also pointed to the door, knowing that Chiara couldn't understand what he was saying. He didn't mean his threat but he meant to intimidate her with his tone more than anything.

Chiara hesitated, as if she wanted to question his authority, and then decided otherwise. She got up and walked to the door, standing just outside the threshold, watching as Valek cleaned up the room. Valek did a quick sweep, cleaning whatever he could and carried it to the nearest trash can. Chiara followed, looking up at him cautiously.

Glancing outside the window briefly, Valek noted that it was late enough for him to start getting ready for dinner. He led Chiara into the master bedroom and set out her dress, hoping that she could change by herself. She could walk and lift things on her own so Valek figured she'd be able to change also. He grabbed his own things and headed to a different room to change.

When he returned, she was gone again. And the dress was still there, untouched. Valek checked every room again and found Chiara sitting on his chair in the living room, pretending to read a book. She garbled a few letters out loud, giggled, and then took his ink pen and tried to write something, though she couldn't since the cap was still on. Valek observed her for a moment, wondering if there was something wrong with her brain. Surely all children weren't this odd…

Still, Valek had work to do so he gently pried the book away from Chiara and led her back to the master bedroom. He pointed to the clothes and then crossed his arms again, giving her a _look. _Chiara watched him back curiously and then raised her arms. Valek stared at her stupidly. He didn't think she wanted to be picked up but what else could she mean?

So he picked her up and the two of them exchanged confused looks again. At last, Valek decided that this was going nowhere and he needed to take action. He set Chiara down and tried to unfasten her dress to help her change. As he pulled on the fabric, Chiara raised her arms again and Valek realized that she was trying to help him change her clothes. He shook his head and chuckled slightly before finishing his task.

"Well, that was difficult." He said, after doing all 27 buttons on her little dress.

Chiara garbled something back at him and smiled. Then she raised her little arms and came closer. Valek could tell she wanted to be picked up again, though he had no desire to carry her around. Couldn't she just walk next to him or something? Valek stepped back as Chiara came forward and eventually she backed him into a corner.

"I don't want to hold you. How about you just walk next to me?" He asked and stepped around her, walking out of the room. Chiara ran up and grabbed his leg, clinging to it as he walked. Valek didn't stop, he figured she'd let go on her own eventually. But that time never came as Chiara realized she was small enough to sit on Valek's foot as long as she clung to his shin with both her arms and legs.

Valek looked down at Chiara in awe. She was such an annoying little demon but surprisingly smart. She knew how to be quiet and how to get what she wanted. Still, Valek didn't pick her up because that would mean giving into her demands. Instead, he walked all the way to the Commander's rooms with Chiara sitting and clinging to his leg. He got odd looks as he passed by, but he looked at everyone so stonily no one dared questioning him.

To his great chagrin, many generals were in the room, dining with the Commander when Valek arrived. They tried to hold back their snickers as they saw Chiara but failed. Both Chiara and Valek leveled them all icy glares until they fell silence. Valek smirked; half wishing he could tell Chiara to bite them all.

As dinner started, some of the female generals decided that Chiara would be a good distraction from the monotony of the present conversation and asked Valek if they could talk to her. Valek shrugged and gave them his consent. He had no doubts that Chiara could handle herself if any generals started to annoy her too much.

One young general by the name of General Sweet cooed to Chiara across the room and offered her some tea. Curious, Chiara climbed out of Valek's lap and made her way over, still holding a fork in one hand and a napkin in the other. General Sweet placed the little girl in her lap and gave her the cooled tea. Chiara watched it swish around the cup in delight and then spontaneously stuffed her napkin in the cup, spilling the contents onto herself and General Sweet. She clapped and laughed in delight as the poked her now-stained dress with her fork.

"I'll take her from you." Another General said to General Sweet as she tried to clean her suit.

"Thanks." General Sweet handed over Chiara and went to change. Chiara examined the new general carefully and decided that she didn't like what she saw. She scowled and wiggled her way to the ground and then crawled under the table.

Valek briefly considered checking on her down there but he decided that what he didn't know couldn't hurt him. Still, he crossed his legs under the table so that Chiara wouldn't be able to do anything to him. For a few moments, the conversation flowed and Chiara seemed pretty content to just sit there and mumble to herself, and then all of a sudden, four generals hissed and jerked out of their chair.

Valek sighed and looked under the table to see Chiara grinning at him wickedly, still holding her fork in her hand. "Get out." He said and pointed to the area next to him.

As Chiara crawled out, General Sweet returned and decided that she hadn't had enough of the cute little girl. She strode by and swept Chiara in her arms on her way to her chair. Chaira was stunned for a moment and then became angry. She growled at General Sweet and when the general only laughed, Chiara reached up and bit her nose.

General Sweet jerked back, and nearly dropped Chiara. The other female generals swarmed General Sweet and Chiara, trying to calm the situation. Valek set back in his chair and watched, knowing he'd have to intervene soon, but too amused to take action yet. Chiara slowly made her way through the arms of all the female generals, each enraging her more that the last. Finally, a crying, squirming, screaming Chiara was thrust into Valek's arms to handle.

"Hey there." He said calmly, holding his niece a little away. "It's okay, those old ladies aren't going to bother you anymore." He said soothingly and Chiara silenced for a moment, looking around the room distrustfully. Valek brought her closer, and she buried her face in his neck, slowly relaxing.

The generals all looked at Valek in awe. "How did you calm her down so quickly?" General Sweet asked, rubbing her red nose.

Valek gave a one armed shrug. _May be it's because I leave her alone. _He thought but outwardly said very little. "She's tired." He said, as if that was an explanation.

As the room slowly returned to its calm atmosphere, Chiara dosed. Sometimes, when one general got too loud, Chiara would wake up, screech and then go back to sleep once the room was silent. Valek found this supremely amusing and found that Chiara wasn't as bad as he'd first thought. She had a way of making him laugh when he was bored.

When he finally returned to his room, he found Cai passed out on his couch. Cai was here to pick up his daughter but clearly the days exhaustion had caught up to him before Valek had. Valek carefully laid a sleeping Chiara on Cai's chest and found the stone bracelet to put on her tiny wrist.

When he was almost done fastening the bracelet, Chiara opened one eye and looked at him blearily, but thankfully didn't make a fuss. Valek gently stroked her cheek and made his way back to his room, more content than he ever thought he would be.

**DID YOU LIKE IT? AS ALWAYS, PLEASE LEAVE ME YOUR THOUGHTS, WANTS, AND LOVE. I HAVE A COUSIN WHO IS LIKE CHIARA. HE'S SO FUNNY IT KILLS ME. WHAT DID YOU DO WHEN YOU GOT MAD AS A TODDLER? **


	12. Chapter 12

**WOW. A NEW CHAPTER! THIS IS DECENTLY LONG. ENJOY:**

**Disclaimer: Vivian claims she gave Mrs. Snyder inspiration for the Study Series…should I believe her?**

Thankfully, Valek's adventures with his neice and nephew came to an end in the next few days as Vivian and Yelena returned home.

"Welcome back, Love." Valek embraced Yelena warmly when she returned. "Did you miss me?" He asked expectantly.

Yelena laughed. "Yes, I did, actually. Did _you _miss _me_?" She teased back.

Valek sighed dramatically. "Unfortunately, yes. I was so sad and depressed, I nearly opened my suite up to Ayden and Chiara. Thankfully, I learned my lesson before everything got ruined."

Yelena laughed in surprised delight. "Really? Tell my everything."

Valek spent the rest of the day regaling Yelena with his traumatic stories and occupied his night with getting "reacquainted", since Valek insisted that so much time with the children may have caused faulty memory.

After thoroughly making sure his memory was correct, Valek finally asked the questions Yelena was expecting to hear. "So, how was your time with Vivian? Terrible to the point where you don't wish to relive the experience, I hope." He winked mischievously.

Yelena rolled her eyes. "Actually, I had a great time. I'm going to be so sad when they leave."

"Hm…" Valek said noncommittally. He _would _miss them but he didn't like admitting it. In his experience, the more you thought about something, the more it affected you. "Do you know when they will leave?" He asked. Usually he would know but between his job and the kids, he hadn't had much downtime with Cai.

Yelena nodded sadly. "A few days. As long as it takes for the soldiers to get packed up and ready to move."

Valek's eyes shot up in surprise. "So soon? They'll be done in two days."

"Yeah." Yelena rubbed her arm and it was then that Valek noticed she was wearing an armlet. He fingered it, noting the almost pure gold embedded with rubies of all shapes and sizes. He poked at the ring, wondering if it would dent and he felt a flare of magic.

"What's this?" He asked, knowing Vivian had given it to Yelena.

"It's an armlet. Isn't it beautiful?" She said, running her hands over it as well. "Vivian said that if I wear it, it will help expand my magic. So you know how there is a limit to how far I can mind talk with others?" Valek nodded. They didn't know the exact range, but there was a certain point where Yelena couldn't connect her mind to others. "Well, now I'll be able to talk to Vivian when she's in her homeland and you know how far away that is." Yelena explained.

Valek nodded, pondering the gift. "So, will it enhance the other aspects of your magic as well?"

Yelena nodded. "Yes, and that kind of scares me, having so much power."

Valek agreed. "It can be dangerous, I don't think you should wear it all the time."

"I know." Yelena sighed. "But it's so pretty and once I take it off, I'll probably forget about it. You know, out of sight is out of mind."

Valek shrugged. "Sometimes it's better to keep distant people at a distance."

Yelena gave Valek a strange look and he was sure she was going to explain but she surprised him. "So, did you actually receive any of the letters Vivian claims to have sent you?"

Valek stared at her in surprise and then burst out laughing. "I may have received a couple, years ago." He grinned. "But there is no need to tell her I couldn't find time to respond to them."

Yelena rolled her eyes and grinned back. After a few moments of content silence, both Yelena and Valek tensed at the sound of someone banging on the door. They both exchanged looks and said "Ayden" in unison.

Yelena shot off the couch and opened the door, revealing not only Ayden, but Chiara too. Ayden walked into the room, all business, dragging a big, black suitcase behind him. He walked all the way up to Valek and garbled something to him proudly.

Valek nodded and pointed to the ground next to him. "Thanks, you can put it there."

Yelena walked in, carrying Chiara. "You understand him?" She asked incredulously.

Valek shrugged. "Not really, but it's quite clear what he wants."

Chiara, who had been previously preoccupied with Valek's bracelet on her arm, suddenly huffed and began yelling. Yelena and Valek exchanged startled looks before Yelena cautiously put Chiara on the ground. Chiara stalked over to Valek and shoved her bracelet clad hand in his face. He looked at the bracelet curiously, and finding nothing wrong, settled for simply tightening it.

Chiara inspected it again and looked at Valek with a pleased smile on her face. She stalked forward and planted a kiss on Valek's cheek. And then, as if realizing what she had just done, she leaned forward and bit him, as if trying to redeem herself.

Yelena and Valek exchanged shocked looks before Yelena burst out laughing. Valek scooted away from a niece a little bit. "I swear, you are exactly like your mother." He told her. "Incomprehensible even to the most intelligent minds."

"And I suppose you think of yourself as one of those intelligent minds?" A cool voice asked and Valek turned to the doorway to see Vivian arching an eyebrow at him. Cai stood behind her smirking.

"Well, obviously." Valek said as if he were surprised she would think otherwise. "I mean, look at where I am. Obviously, I'm smart. But beyond that, everything I do makes sense, unlike this little demon here, who decided to bite me when I helped her." Valek waved his hand at Chiara.

Vivian slapped Valek in the back of his head. "Don't talk about my daughter like that!" She narrowed her eyes at him. "That was her way of showing affection."

Valek snorted. "Really? Because I wasn't feeling it. Usually when I show affection, it doesn't hurt."

"She's a _child._" Vivian said exasperatedly. "Goodness, you act as if you've never had to deal with children before."

"I haven't." Valek replied bluntly. "The only kids I ever had to put up with were the King's and I killed them along with their parents.

Vivian's eyes bore into Valek's. He stared right back before deciding to add fuel to the flames. "I kill your kind too. I don't think it's very wise to be disagreeing with the King Killer." He said seriously.

Vivian's eyes turned more dangerous, if possible, but Cai just burst into laughter. "Bro, you need to make your threats a little more frightening. That's one of the weakest ones I've ever heard."

Yelena frowned. "You get death threats often?" She asked Cai.

Cai grinned. "I have an open policy for those who wish to threaten me. I find it amusing. But I've got to say, Vivian does it best. It kind of makes me jealous sometimes."

Vivian sighed and rolled her eyes. "Of course, of all the things to be jealous of, my dear."

"Well, you don't have any other redeeming qualities." Valek quipped and smirked.

"Funny, unfortunately, this trait it seems to runs in the family because clearly, you're lacking as well." She said in a bored tone.

Valek let the comment slide. "That's fine, as long as you're admitting your inferiority."

"Inferiority to whom? Not you surely. There is a donkey attached to one of the carts outside who displays more intellect than you do." Vivian shot back.

Cai sighed loudly before Valek could respond. "Listen guys, as much as I love the battle of wits going on here, I really want to go to sleep, so could you tone it down?" He rested his head on the cushion behind him and started snoring loudly.

"He's a real gem, that one." Valek said disdainfully.

Vivian burst out laughing. "You have no idea. I wish you could see him when he's dealing with the court." She rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Ayden has more patience. Cai's leg starts bouncing three minutes in, two minutes later he's pacing. In 15 minutes he's tired of listening to others and starts a question and answer session and then closes within an hour after hearing multiple death threats. I swear, it's like the man can't sleep if he's not being threatened."

"True story. I work a lot better under pressure." Cai said without opening his eyes.

"Go back to sleep. It makes me happy when you're quiet, I can pretend you're dead." Valek said seriously.

Cai burst out laughing. "You remind me of my brother. I don't think he's ever said a nice word to anyone. Even his wife."

"Growing up with you could probably do that to a man." Valek said in deadpan.

Yelena watched the three bicker and knew if she didn't step in, this would go on all night. "So, guys. What's in the suitcase?" She cut in.

"Gifts." Vivian said, striding over to the suitcase and opening it.

A slow, predatory grin curled on Valek's face and he slipped over to the suitcase, looking like a kid who'd gotten his favorite birthday gift. Yelena came closer and frowned at what she saw. "Weapons?" She asked.

The suitcase was full of various weapons that resembled what Ixia already had but seemed slightly different and higher tech. Valek reached out, hovering over a couple weapons, as if unable to choose which one he wanted to examine first. When he finally decided, he reached for the crystal handle of a double sided sword. The moment his fingers touched the smooth surface, he hissed and pulled back quickly. "It's magic." He looked at Vivian accusingly.

Vivian rolled her eyes. "Yes, it has to be if you want to be able to use it more than once."

"Explain." Valek raised a single, unimpressed eyebrow.

"Cai." Vivian picked up the weapon and tossed it casually to her husband.

Cai caught one side of the blade neatly between his index and thumb. "Ah…beautiful." Cai stared at the blade adoringly for a moment before standing up and demonstrating how to use it. "As you can see, there are two swords attached in the middle with the crystal." Cai said after taking a few experimental swings. "Say you wish to detach them…" He held the two opposite ends of the middle handle and brought it down on his knee, breaking the crystal and effectively separating the sword in two. He spun both swords around in his hands. "And if you want to made one large sword again…" He held the ends of the two swords together and the crystal restored itself.

"Hm…" Valek observed it from where he stood. "Good, I don't like the magic. What else?"

Vivian held up a clear shield and something that looked like a large, extremely serrated sword. "These two go hand in hand." She picked up another clear shield from the briefcase. "The shields slot together like this." She attached the two so there was nothing in between except a thin seam. "If you have many of these, you can make a border shield going all around your interior soldiers. Getting through will be almost impossible in hand to hand combat. And you will have to use missile weapons to hurt the soldiers inside." She handed the attached shields to Cai. "That is where this comes in." She held up the new sword. "It is thin enough that it slides between the two shields…" She shoved the sword in the seam and Cai curled his body back protectively so it didn't stab his chest. "And if you go deep enough, you will probably hit someone. If the objective is to simply break up the shield, you can slide down and back and it will break the handle." She carefully pulled out the sword so it didn't damage the shields.

"But the sword only works if the other side has this type of shield, or else you don't want people running around with this kind of sword, wounds get messy." Cai's seriousness indicated he'd seen the brutality of the sword first hand.

"And while this shield is very effective, it would stop us from attacking as well." Valek frowned. "No, I don't like it."

Vivian was about to reach in for another weapon when Yelena spotted a row of bottles attached to the top of the suitcase. "What are these?" She asked.

"Poisons." Vivian said. "Some of these I've acquired from my travels and others I've made myself. There is a note attached to each stating the name, taste, and side effects."

"You make poisons? Why?" Yelena asked, bewildered.

"I have free time. Plus, there are certain people that need to be disposed at times and using a commonly known poison would make all the leads point back to us. If I use one of my own poisons, I'm the only one who knows if the person died from true poisoning or from something else."

Yelena shivered. She couldn't imagine making poisons to kill people. "So, as Queen, you have to dispose of people often?" She asked cautiously. Suddenly Vivian didn't seem as harmless and fun as she did on their vacation.

Vivian shrugged. "Think of it this way, I do what Valek does, simply on a more focused level. We have a chief of security, he's good, and we have an assassin, he does his job but has an attitude to match his skill. Sometimes you need someone in between. Someone with clout, friends, and special skills. That's where I come in. I know how to get the job done without getting caught. And if I do, who's going to have the guts to tell Cai his wife is a criminal?"

"Um…" Yelena couldn't believe her ears. But then again, Vivian was part of Valek's family and there wasn't much Valek couldn't get away with. "So…you're okay with that?" She asked Cai.

Cai sighed. "It's work. Someone has to do it. I'd like to do it myself but I've got so many people after my own skin I can't. Vivian is next best. I know I can trust her."

"Is this how all royalty works?" Yelena looked between Cai, Vivian, and Valek.

"No, those two are a rare case. There is intrigue, obviously, but most royals like to hire someone. Vivian is common born like me so she likes to handle her own dirty work." Valek explained.

Then, as if the kids had become bored of the adults talking, Chiara suddenly let out a high pitched scream and Ayden burst out laughing, running to hide behind Valek's legs. He shoved his face through Valek's knees to get a good look at the still screaming Chiara on Valek's desk.

"What did you do?" Vivian asked Ayden sternly.

"More like what did Chiara do?" Valek pointed to the little girl who was currently covered in ink and still screaming as she left a blue hand print on all the papers on Valek's desk.

"Chiara…" Vivian warned. Chiara promptly quieted and looked at her mom guiltily. Vivian stalked forward slowly and pointed to the ground in front of her. Chiara obediently crawled off Valek's desk and stood in front of her mother.

"Please get her cleaned up before she ruins more of my room." Valek said, leveling Chiara with a glare.

Vivian snorted. "Please, you're still miffed that she bit you."

"Obviously." Valek rolled his eyes. "If that leaves a mark, you have to give me 12 more of those magic healing salves."

Vivian's mouth curled into a feral grin. "Oh, really, and if I don't, what will you do about it?" She asked.

Yelena glanced at Cai, who was watching the verbal sparring with a grin. The day was winding down and Yelena was tired. If she didn't put a stop to this, it would be going on all night. "How about we continue this tomorrow?" She suggested. "I'm tired."

"Good idea. I have to clean these guys up, too. Good night, Yelena. Good night, old man." Vivian said cheerily and scooped up Chiara as she headed to the door.

"Good night, unwanted one." Valek smirked back. "Please pack your things and leave quickly!"

Vivian sent a rush of magic at Valek, trapping him in his place for a moment. Yelena rolled her eyes. How childish. "Oh, they forgot their stuff." She gestured to the briefcase still lying on Valek's floor.

"No." He grinned. "This is my payment for allowing them to visit."

**I'M PRETTY SURE THIS IS THE LONGEST CHAPTER SO FAR. THIS STORY IS DRAWING TO A CLOSE. AS ALWAYS, PLEASE REVIEW. ANYTHING YOU WANT TO SEE BEFORE I WRAP UP THIS STORY?**


	13. Chapter 13

**HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN? YEARS? WELL, HERE YOU GO! **

**Disclaimer: My sister hates Cai and loves Valek. Why don't people like my original characters? Yo, Snyder, there is a problem if your Master Assassin is lovable. **

The next few days flew by in a haze of Vivian-Valek banter and Ayden-Chiara drama. Before anyone was ready, it was time for Cai and Vivian to leave. On the eve of their departure, Yelena finally asked the question she'd wondered about since she'd first met Cai.

"So how did you all meet?" She asked over dinner.

Vivian, who was in the middle of feeding Chiara, stopped and grinned. "Oh, it's a good story. So-"

Valek cut her off. "No, Vivian. Stop spewing lies. I'll tell you, love." He began before getting cut off by Cai.

"Oh, let me tell you! Right, so, Vivian hunted down Valek when they were children and wrestled him into submission so he would allow her to stay with him while he trained to become the Ultimate Creeper-"

"That is absolutely incorrect." Valek interrupted.

"I never thought I would agree with the shriveled old raisin, but he's right. Cai, nothing you said was even marginally close to the truth." Vivian rolled her eyes.

"I would appreciate it if you would stop getting jealous by my incredibly good looks. And I would like to commend you for telling the truth for the first time in your life." Valek gave Vivian a condescending smile.

Vivian snorted. "Incredibly good looks? Valek, I'm not one to hyperbolize but you seriously look like a bloodless corpse."

"Really? And I suspect you would know all about bloodless corpses, correct? That's probably how you spend all your free time while Cai is slacking off on his kingly duties."

"Oh, please. You jealous caveman. Simply because Cai lives a lavish life without overworking himself doesn't mean you need spew filth. Grow up-"

"Alright! Back to the topic at hand!" Yelena cut in before Valek and Vivian could attack one another.

"I truly believe I should be the one to start out this story." Vivian said. "I found Valek and if it hadn't been for my intervention, the three of us would never have met."

"Your backstory has little purpose." Valek waved his hand in her face. "Really, Yelena, allow me. You know I give accurate reports." He winked.

Yelena rolled her eyes and grinned. "Fine."

"Favoritism." Vivian growled beneath her breath and went back to feeding Chiara. "You better tell it right, Valek." She gave him the hairy eyeball.

He smirked. "So, during the time when I was training to become an assassin, I was residing in a small town on the border of Sitia. The people I was training with actually move around quite often so I got to experience many climates and types of people.

"So, while I was staying in that particular town, my fellow students and I each got our own little hovel to sleep and keep out sparse possessions in. Mine was nearly empty as I didn't travel with anything valuable and didn't actively carve until after most of my training was complete.

"A few days after moving to that town, I came home on night after completing a beginner's assignment and found a little girl sitting in my bed." At this point, he raised an eyebrow at Vivian.

Vivian gapped at him. "A little girl in your bed? You pedophile!"

"Oh, shut up." He rolled his eyes and turned back to Yelena. "The little girl was, of course, Vivian. Though at that point, I had no idea who she was and didn't even know I had a cousin. All I knew was that there was an unnerving child sitting on top of my covers, staring at me. So, I did what I had been taught to do once I saw an intruder: I attacked her."

Yelena gasped. "You attacked a little girl?!"

Valek rolled his eyes. "Love, I was training to become an assassin. I've killed children before, you know this. And, she was an intruder that showed no intention of behaving like a normal human being."

Cai snickered. "Showed no intention of behaving like a normal human being." He repeated and shook his head. "I see you were pretentious even then."

Valek huffed but otherwise ignored Cai. "As I was saying, I attacked her. I thought I would simply be able to tackle her, tie her up, and toss her on the streets to become someone else's problem but unfortunately, that was not the case. Even at such a young age, Vivian had received training but since I had no idea, you can imagine my surprise when I found myself on the floor with a little 11 year old sitting on my chest, beating my face with her tiny fists.

"Eventually, Vivian either got bored or tired and her attacks let up long enough for me to flip over and pin her to the ground. At that point, it occurred to me that if I could befriend the little beast, this girl could help me train and perhaps have my back, should one of my fellow students decide to attack me in my sleep."

"That happened?" Yelena asked with a frown.

Valek nodded. "It was competitive training. Everyone wanted to be the best and the most efficient way to ensure success is by wiping out the competition. Of course, it wasn't so bad in the beginning days of training, but by the end, only three out of the twenty-five original students were alive."

"Yeah, yeah. Impress Yelena with your barbaric stories later. Back to how we met…" Vivian prodded.

"Right, so I asked her what she was doing in my home and she started rattling off in another language. And after talking the entire night long, I came to the realization that she could understand what I was saying but didn't know how to speak my language. It took another arduous week for me to get pieces of her story and I nearly kicked her out when she tried to suggest we were related. It wasn't until I looked through her pack one day that I saw proof of her words." Valek paused to take a breath and Vivian completed his thought.

"I was out filching dresses and jewelry, (because that was what I'd been doing all my childhood) and on Valek's rare day off, he was looking through my stuff because he still wasn't convinced that I wasn't out to get him. When he opened my pack, he saw that I had a small painting of my mother and his mother. They were sisters and though the painting was old and smudged, the faces were recognizable." Vivian explained.

"It hadn't even occurred to me at that point that my aunt could have been Vivian's mother because she had been abducted years before my mother even married my father. I'd never met my aunt and my mother rarely talked about her because we had other things to worry about." Valek's eyes clouded momentarily before he continued. "But after seeing that picture, I finally understood and came to terms that perhaps Vivian might be telling the truth about her identity."

"And by the time he finally got his act together, I'd learned enough English to finally communicate with him and so there wasn't as much confusion." Vivan concluded.

"Wait, how did you find Valek?" Yelena asked.

"Oh, that was easy. I'd always known where my mother was from and I had more family left so once I was old enough, I went out searching for them. My father was power hungry and so all his children were trained from the moment they learned how to walk. I was the runt of the pack, so to speak, so he didn't care much what happened to me. After my mother died, there was nothing tying me to him and I figured now was as good a time as ever for me to pack my bags and get out of there." Vivian smiled and winked.

"Just like that?" Yelena asked incredulously. "You just got up and walked away from your home across the mountains and hunted down Valek?"

"Well, it was difficult, obviously." Vivian said with a calm shrug. "But it's the past, we move forward. As for finding Valek-"

"I'm just that magnetic. People can't stay away from me." Valek grinned smugly.

Vivian rolled her eyes. "This is true, unfortunately. You smell so terrible people travel all across the world simply to beg you to take a shower and put the rest of us out of our misery. Yelena, did you know Valek only used to bathe once a month? It was so disgusting." She gagged.

"More lies, Vivian?" Valek raised an eyebrow. "Don't you ever run out? At this point, I'd say you have an addiction. Have you gone to a medic to get your brain checked yet? This can't possibly be healthy…"

Before Vivian could respond, Yelena cut in again. "Alright. Wonderful. Now how did you guys meet Cai?" She steered them back on topic.

"Hm…I met him for the first time while stealing all the money in his pocket, I think." Vivian's forehead furrowed in concentration, trying to think back to their first meeting.

Valek snorted. "Have some shame, Vivian. It's one thing to be proud of one's profession but pickpocketing is the lowest level of crime."

Vivian glared. "Simply because the rest of us don't hang around dead bodies as much as you do, doesn't mean our jobs are any less taxing, Valek. Your lack of respect for others is rude and inconsiderate."

Yelena sighed, wondering if she would ever find out how the pair had found Cai. While waiting for Vivian and Valek to stop verbally attacking one another, she saw Cai gently pushing Ayden and Chiara out the door and into the hallway. "Have fun!" He said with a grin before closing the door and leaving them to wander the castle on their own.

Yelena gawked at him when he sat back down. "What did you just do? Something could happen to them!" Yelena exclaimed worriedly.

Cai shook his head happily. "Oh, don't worry. Nothing will happen. They wander around all the time." He assured her. "Besides, you forget my men walk around the castle too. They'll watch out for Ayden and Chiara."

Yelena was beginning to realize that Valek's issues with Cai were very relevant. But at the same time, she wondered how Vivian didn't know (or perhaps didn't care) that she was married to the most irresponsible man on earth.

"So how did you meet Cai?" Yelena asked Valek once there was a lull in insults.

"I was on a job. And while waiting for my prey to arrive, a drunk young man literally fell into my lap and puked all over my shirt. Being the youthful hothead that I was, I got up and punched him out. I thought he would attempt to attack back but instead, he just laid on the floor and burst into giggles. And then he introduced himself to me, as if I wanted to know." Valek shook his head in disgust.

"You did want to know who I was. I could see it in your eyes." Cai grinned and winked. "You simply stood there, arms tense, waiting for _something_. So I couldn't leave you hanging."

Valek rolled his eyes. "Vivian, why did you have to marry Cai of all people, why didn't you stick with Hunter?" He whined.

"Who is Hunter?" Yelena asked curiously.

"Oh, yeah, why didn't you stick with Hunter? You two made a splendid pair." Cai remarked, smirking.

Vivian threw a piece of food at Cai. "Man up. You aren't supposed to want me to be with someone else."

"We already knew he wasn't a true man." Valek cut in.

"Hey! If you were with him, I wouldn't have to worry about you cutting _my _head off. Your wrath would be _his _problem." Cai said at the same time.

Yelena shook her head sadly. This was just the nail in the coffin. Something was seriously wrong with Cai. "Right, so who is Hunter?" She repeated.

"Oh, he was the man who was courting me before Cai. His real name wasn't Hunter, by the way. He didn't like his ostentatious birth name and made everyone call him Hunter."

"What was his real name and why was he courting you? I thought you were a kid!" Yelena asked, alarmed.

Vivian rolled her eyes. "Dear, you forget we were living in a lawless land. Age doesn't matter, the way you carry yourself does. Besides, he didn't know how old I was and it's not like we did anything. I matured quickly and knew how to act much older than my true age. For all he knew, I was short and only a few years younger than him." And then she grinned wickedly. "Poor guy's true name was Sirhan Ugo Titan. I don't blame him for trying to run away from that." She snickered.

Valek snickered as well. "He did the right thing by changing his name. No one would take him seriously if he told them his name was Sirhan. But really, why did you break up? You two seemed perfect."

"Too perfect." Vivian wrinkled her nose. "Too similar, too. We were laid back about the same things, got fired up about the same things, the more we were together, the worse it got. When we were good, we were great, when we were not-so-good…well, we got into enough life threatening situations that we agreed to go separate ways."

Valek's brows shot up. "Life threatening? He became abusive?" He asked in shock.

Vivian snorted. "Naw, usually he was on the receiving end. You know what happens when people get angry. Furniture goes flying, glass breaks, things explode, things like that. That doesn't happen to you?" She raised calm eyebrows, as if that was the norm.

Valek simply stared for a moment. "Well, I'm glad you found someone new then. Though, for the record, no, that is not normal. You seriously need to see a medic. You know what, if money or pride is a problem, I'll have someone here look at you. It'll be completely confidential, I promise." He said seriously, only the slight twitch of his lips giving his amusement away.

Vivian leaned forward and addressed him with the same sincerity. "Thank you, dear cousin. Your consideration means so much to me. But I'm waiting until I find someone properly qualified, you know. I mean, I don't trust anyone who thinks you're sane because there is just something inherently wrong with you. And until a medic can accept all the facts, I don't trust them to care for me."

Cai snickered and then glanced at the window. "Ah, well, this has been fun. But we have to leave tomorrow so we need rest. Let's go, Vivian!" He hopped to his feet and held a hand out to his wife.

Vivian rolled her eyes and rose up gracefully after him. "Well, we'll see you in the morning, I guess." She said a little sadly and hugged both Yelena and Valek tightly. "Good night."

"Good night." The assassin and soul finder said in unison.

And as they waited for the King and Queen to leave, they heard Vivian ask. "Cai, where are my children?"

**HEHE. CAI IS IN FOR IT. LOSING THE KIDS…**

**SO, I THINK THE NEXT CHAPTER SHOULD BE THE LAST? I HAD A WEDDING AND YELENA FIGHTING REQUEST. UH…I DON'T THINK YELENA AND VALEK ARE READY FOR MARRIAGE AT ALL AND IT'S KINDA HARD FOR ME TO MAKE YELENA GO ON THE DEFENSIVE FOR THIS STORY. SORRY. I'LL SEE IF I CAN FIT SOMETHING IN THOUGHT. LIKE A LAST MINUTE FIGHT TRAINING THINGY…MAYBE. **

_**IMPORTANT: KINDA…I MADE A CHANGE TO CHAPTER 4. I TOOK THE COWARD'S WAY OUT WHEN YELENA WAS SUPPOSED TO MEET VIVIAN SO I WENT BACK AND CHANGED IT. IT'S JUST A FEW PARAGRAPHS IN THE MIDDLE IF YOU WANT TO GO BACK AND READ THE CHANGES. IT DOESN'T AFFECT THE REST OF THE STORY BUT IS AMUSING :) **_

_**As always, please Review. **_


	14. Chapter 14

**I'M A BAD AUTHOR. I'M SORRY! IT'S BEEN FOREVER, I KNOW. BUT HERE IS THE END! ENJOY:**

**Disclaimer: Snyder probably wouldn't leave you hanging for so long. Sorry! **

"I'm leaving in an hour."

"Thank Fate."

"Will you miss me?"

"No."

"Not even a little bit?"

"No."

"How about my kids?"

"…Not really."

"You're a jerk."

"Thanks."

"Will you come visit me?"

"No."

"Will you at least respond to my letters?"

"No."

"Will you respond to any of my questions in the affirmative?"

"No."

"I'm going to run you over with my carriage before I leave."

"I'd like to see you try."

Vivian looked up from her last minute packing and grinned at Valek. He sat casually on her bed, reading reports and refusing to help her in any manner. "What is it like, being such a big jerk?" She asked, mindful of her language since her children were sleeping nearby.

"Quite exciting, actually." Valek replied without looking up. "Where is Cai?"

"Saying goodbye to the Commander, he didn't want to come out in public so we're saying goodbye beforehand."

"Can you say goodbye to me beforehand too?" Valek asked hopefully.

Vivian threw a statue at Valek's head. "No." She glared.

Valek caught the statue with ease and began inspecting it, looking for chips or cracks.

Out of nowhere, a pillow smashed into the back of his head. "Haha!" Vivian crowed. "I got you!"

Valek rolled his eyes. "I let you get me. I've found that you become marginally more bearable after winning petty childish games."

Vivian snorted. "Yeah right. You wouldn't have let me done that the last time I visited."

"That's because some people mature over time, Vivian. I realize this is a hard concept for you to grasp, as you've never matured, but rest assured, I have." Valek said, pretentiously.

Vivian rolled her eyes and was about to respond when Cai came bursting into the room. "Are you packed, dear lady?" He asked and bowed at Vivian, who was sitting on the floor.

"Yes. Please take those two pieces of luggage to the carriage and try not to wake them up." She pointed to her kids.

"Ok." Cai grinned and toss his children over his shoulders, effectively waking _both_ up.

Chiara started screaming and crying immediately while Ayden slowly woke up and squirmed for his father to put him down. Vivian glared at her husband. "Cai…" She said dangerously.

Cai looked at his wife guiltily. "Sorry! I didn't think they would wake up."

Valek snorted. "You threw your children over your shoulders; almost letting them topple to the ground, and expected them to stay asleep?"

"You're not helping my case." Cai glared at Valek.

"I'm not trying to." Valek shot back.

Vivian sighed and cut in. "Cai, please give Chiara to me and put all the other luggage in the carriage. Take Ayden with you. He can nap in the carriage." She gestured for Ayden to follow his father.

"Are you sure you can trust Cai with Ayden?" Valek asked.

"Yes, Ayden is his heir. I'm not giving Cai another one." Vivian closed the last bag and hoisted Chiara on her hip, trying to rock the little girl to sleep. "Valek, please bring this bag to the carriage." She said and walked out.

Valek effortlessly lifted the bag and wandered off to find Yelena so they could say goodbye together. Once he had dropped off the bag and gathered Yelena, he stood off to the side and watched as the soldiers mounted their horses and readied the carriage.

"Should we ask them if they need help?" Yelena suggested.

"No." Valek said, leaning against the wall.

Yelena giggled and rolled her eyes. "Okay."

After everything was put away and the guards had formed their ring around the royal carriage, Vivian and Cai approached Valek and Yelena.

"Alright, so this is goodbye." Vivian sighed. "I'll miss you guys." She hugged Yelena tightly. "Please be patient when Valek cries himself to sleep for the next few weeks. As much as he likes to pretend he's tough, we both know he's just a big piece of bread dough." She smirked.

Valek crossed his arms and refused to give Vivian a hug. "I am not a piece of bread dough. Of all the things to compare me to…Have you gotten so sad you've lost your mind?"

Vivian hugged Valek through his crossed arms. "I was simply trying to imply that you're soft and mushy. I mean, now that you're getting older, some of that muscle is turning into fat." She said innocently.

"None of my muscle is turning into fat!" Valek growled, flexing his arms. "Feel my bicep and tell me that's fat." He challenged.

Vivian shrugged and lightly pressed into his arms with three fingers. "Seems squishy to me." She said and turned to Cai. "Are you ready to go?"

Cai, who had been staring at the sky with his mouth slightly open, startled when she spoke to him. "I'm sorry, what? I mean, yes, of course. Goodbye!" He waved to Yelena and Valek.

As they were walking away, Vivian turned to Cai and asked very seriously. "Is Ayden in the carriage? I plan on riding outside and he wasn't in there when I put Chiara in her seat."

"Yes, he must be in there." Cai said blithely. "He was probably hiding under the seats when you went in."

Vivian narrowed her eyes. "And what will happen if he's not in there?" She asked.

Cai rolled his eyes. "Don't worry, he's there. I _promise_."

Vivian pursed her lips and nodded. She turned around one last time as she mounted her horse and waved goodbye to Valek and Yelena.

Once they were gone, Valek let out a sigh of relief. "Finally." He groaned and stretched his neck. "I was beginning to think they would never leave."

Yelena simply smiled. "You know it's okay to admit you are going to miss them." She told him, raising her eyebrows slightly.

"As if." Valek scoffed. "The only one I even minutely liked was Ayden."

And as though his words had summoned the little boy, Ayden came running through the gates, yelling, "MAE! MAE!"

Valek's eyes widened as he processed what was before him. Vivian and Cai were gone and Ayden had been left behind. Stupid Cai!

"Oh, no! We have to catch up to them!" Yelena, scooped Ayden in her arms, the little boy had begun crying when he saw all the soldiers were gone along with his parents. "Don't worry. We are going to get you home." She cooed at him.

Valek ordered one of the servants to ready his horse and as soon as he was seated on it with Ayden sitting in front of him, Yelena pointed to the distance. "Look! You may not have to go, Valek, it looks like someone is coming back."

Valek leaned forward and squinted. As soon as he saw who it was, he slouched back with a groan. "Really? Vivian sent _Cai_ to get Ayden. Of all the people!" He quickly dismounted and pointed out Cai to Ayden. "Look, your eternally useless father is back!" He said with false excitement.

Ayden clapped happily, not understanding what Valek just said. Valek sighed. It seemed that stupidity was quickly becoming a family trait.

As soon as Cai reached them, Valek thrust Ayden into his arms. "Here is your forgotten luggage. I was afraid I'd have to come after you." He said coldly.

Cai kneeled over, trying to catch his breath. "Thanks. Hey, can I have some water? Vivian made me run all the way over here as punishment."

Valek narrowed his eyes. "No. But you can run yourself back."

Cai looked up and gave Valek his best puppy-eyes. "Please?" He asked in a sugary voice.

Valek was about to respond when a servant came and gave Cai a glass of water. "Why thank you." Cai told the servant smugly.

Valek stared at Cai. "How are you planning on getting back?" He asked.

Cai shrugged. "The same way I got here, I suppose."

"You intend on running all the way back with Ayden hanging off your shoulders?"

"Yup." Cai smiled.

Valek shook his head, Cai was hopeless. "How did you guys not know you left Ayden behind? I thought you all were mind-linked."

"I wasn't paying attention. I suppose Vivian knew, that's probably why she kept asking me if Ayden was really in the carriage." Cai shrugged.

"So how did you finally realize Ayden wasn't there?" Yelena asked.

"Vivian made us stop on the edge of the woods and told me to look in the carriage very carefully." Cai said sheepishly.

Valek shook his head. "You two should not have children." He said very seriously.

"Oh, lighten up." Cai slapped Valek's shoulder. "Everything is fine. Ayden is fine. We're all good." He grinned.

"Fine. But there has to be an easier way to get back to Vivian. You can't simply waltz through Ixia with Ayden attached to your back." Yelena said.

"Why not? It's good exercise!"

"Please do not reason with him." Valek said to Yelena. "You'll only give yourself a headache."

Yelena ignored him. "Don't you have other methods of transportation? We can give you a horse…"

"No we can't." Valek cut in. "Walk through fire, Cai. Your soldiers can do it; you should be able to, as well."

Cai thought over it for a minute. "Well, I can. But that requires Vivian to have a fire ready for me to appear in on the other side. Plus, I can't walk through fire without burning my clothes off."

"Knowing Vivian, she has a fire ready. And don't worry about popping up in the nude. She's likely prepared for that too; if not, it's not a big deal since you don't have much dignity to lose anyway." Valek responded sharply.

"Ouch." Cai finally frowned. "What crawled up your butt and died?"

"You _left you kid here_." Valek said, exasperatedly. "Does that mean nothing to you? What would you like me to do? Congratulate you and kiss your feet?"

Cai sighed. "Relax." He dug into his pocket and pulled out a bag of small leaves. "Here. Chew some of this and it will help you."

Valek looked at the bag disbelievingly. "Really? Now you're trying to give me drugs? You don't think I know coca leaves when I see them?"

"Just try them." Cai encouraged and then went in the castle entrance where a scone was lit up with fire. He murmured some words and held his son close before running the flame over both their bodies.

"What is he doing?" Yelena cried, reaching forward to stop Cai.

"Relax. He knows what he's doing this time." Valek wrapped an arm around her comfortingly. When he saw Yelena still tense, he pulled a leaf out of the bag. "Here, eat this, it'll help you relax."

Yelena gave him the dirty eyeball but still ate the leaf. Her eyes lit up. "Oh, mint! This is good."

Valek frowned and looked into the bag. There wasn't mint in there, he knew for sure. But when he looked more closely, he realized that Cai had stuffed mint leaves in the bag and simply put a few coca leaves on top to mess with Valek. He shook his head. Cai had tricked him. Perhaps he wasn't a hopeless case after all.

"I'll miss them." Yelena said finally.

"Hm…if you try, maybe you can convince me to go visit." Valek winked.

**YEAY! IT'S OVAAAARRR! PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME IF YOU LIKED THE ENDING. THERE PROBABLY WON'T BE A SEQUEL OR ANY OUTTAKES. I'M THINKING ABOUT ANOTHER STORY BUT LETS BE HONEST, IT'S GONNA TAKE ME A WHILE. **

**OH, BTW, COCA LEAVES ARE THE LEAVES USED TO MAKE COCAINE. ISN'T THAT EXCITING? I COULDN'T HAVE CAI GIVE VALEK COCAIN STRAIGHT UP SINCE IT WAS WASN'T EXTRACTED FROM THE PLANT UNTIL 1855, UNFORTUNATELY. BUT WIKI SAYS THAT THE LEAVES STILL WORK ;)**

**TTFN, LOVLIES! REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!**


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